A Walk Down Memory Lane
by LV-chan
Summary: My version of KHIII. Much SxK fluffiness in later chapters and a little RxOC fluffiness as well. Rating for violence, gore, and language. Donald and Goofy gone for most of the story. Chapter 21 is up and awesome!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer - **I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts, II, or any of it's wonderful characters. Just my plotline.

**1. Party.**

Kairi sighed. It had been a year exactly since Sora and Riku had come back from their second adventure. She knew she should have been happy about the party celebrating this today, but she just couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. She still had nightmares from her fears that they would have to leave again.

"Kairi! Come on, you don't want to be late!" Sora called, snapping her out of her reverie. She shook her head, a small frown lingering on her features.

"You okay?" Sora asked, once she was close enough. She tried to smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she lied, not wanting to spoil Sora's nearly euphoric mood. They walked to the beach in front of the secret place quietly for a moment, until Sora broke the tranquil silence.

"Kairi, what's wrong? It's not like you to be so... un-cheerul," Sora finished lamely. He had stopped walking and was looking at her sincerely. Kairi sighed and smiled a bit. She should have realized he would have noticed.

"Well... I guess it's partly about that letter from the King we got, right after you and Riku came back," she admitted unhappily. Sora nodded. The three friends had gotten the letter almost immediately after Sora and Riku had come back. It had said only two sentences: "Trouble is brewing again. I'll come as soon as I need your help again." It had the King's seal. He still hadn't come.

"Well, maybe he took care of it on his own," Sora shrugged. Kairi smiled, his optimism lifting her mood noticeably.

"Come on. We don't want to be late," she smiled, warmth creeping into her tone. Sora smiled in return and they headed to the beach, where they saw Wakka, Selphie, Tidus, and Riku chatting happily by a large table where paper cups and plates, napkins, and a large cake rested. Balloons where tied at either end.

"Finally," Riku called, rolling his ocean-green eyes.

"Sorry," Sora apologized, grinning. They ran to the other four, who each held a paper cup. Kairi hoped they hadn't been waiting long.

"Time to cut the cake, ya!" Wakka said, putting down his blitzball and grabbing a large knife. Soon everyone had a large slice of chocolate cake.

"I propose a toast," Sora said, holding up his cup. Kairi finished her last bite of cake and held up her own.

"To tranquility, simplicity, and childhood!" Sora smiled warmly, never taking his eyes off Kairi. She grinned and gulped down her drink.

"Thanks," she muttered to Sora as he resumed his seat next to her at the large wooden table. The blue tablecloth fluttered in the slight breeze.

"No worries, right?" He breathed, sounding relieved.

"None at all," Kairi assured him. The two teens gazed into each other's eyes, seeing nothing of their surroundings. Riku laughed to himself in the distance. The energy surrounding them began to change. Kairi suddenly felt very warm inside. What was this? Maybe, could it be -

"Guys... look," Riku said, ruining the moment. Kairi turned to see what he was pointing at. There, speeding right towards them, was the gummi ship Sora, Donald, and Goofy had traveled in over a year ago. It sped towards the beach smoothly, flying very close to the water.

Sora threw a frantic glance at Kairi, who was horrified.

"No! Not again!" She murmured, falling to the ground and clutching at her hair.

"Kairi! Kairi, it's okay," Sora whispered frantically, shaking her a little. "Kairi, _listen_ to me. We don't even know what they want."

"What else could it be, Sora! You're gonna have to leave again, and Riku with you! And you're going to make me stay here, just like before! I can't do it again!" Kairi sobbed, crystalline tears rolling down her cheeks.

The gummi ship landed softly. A soft whirring sounded as the door opened to reveal Donald and Goofy, looking confused.

"Kairi! What's wrong?" Donald asked, going to her. He put one feathered hand on her shoulder, shooting Sora a quizzical look.

"She's... upset," he explained limply. Kairi continued to shake as Donald gave Sora a No Duh look. Kairi listened as hard as she could, for Goofy was speaking to Riku in a hushed tone. Hushed for Goofy, anyway.

"...And it's gotten beyond control," he whispered.

"Are you sure? There's no other option?" Riku asked, sounding worried. Kairi assumed Goofy nodded, because the only other sound she heard was her labored breathing.

_Pull yourself together!_ A voice inside her commanded harshly.

_...Namine?_ Kairi asked in surprise.

_Of course, who else would it be? Now control yourself! Rox...Sora is really distressed right now, and your little show isn't helping him._

_But... he's going to go away again!_

_Then go with him. You can convince him, I'm sure of it._

Kairi stood suddenly. She turned to Sora, a stern and absolute look on her face.

"I'm going," she stated matter-of-factly.

"No!" Sora objected, looking angry. "It's way too dangerous! We've already been through this."

"I don't care. The only reason I stayed before was because you told me to, but I'm not taking orders anymore. I have a keyblade; I can fight," Kairi said, her tone still unrelenting and non-negotiable.

"Sora... she has a point. And you know she won't stop until she has her way," Riku pointed out quietly.

"So there!" Kairi said self-riteously, resisting the urge to stick her tongue out at Sora.

After a moment of consideration, Sora looked up to see Kairi's pleading face. A defeated look crept upon his own features.

"Fine... but I'm not letting you out of my sight for a second, clear?" He asked, his clear blue eyes still conflicted, but defeated regardless.

"Crystal," Kairi agreed, smiling.

_Nice work_, Namine complimented approvingly.

_Thanks._

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Hey! LVchan here! Thanks for reading. Reviews are appreciated! This is my first fic, so I hoped you liked it. I'll get Chapter 2 up as fast as I can.

(But reviews might make it faster... )


	2. Chapter 2 Promise

**2. Promise.**

Kairi was in her room, packing some clothing for her trip. She had given a tearful farewell to her mother, who was being extremely understanding of the situation. Kairi appreciated it immensely.

"Now if only I could get Sora to be so agreeable..." she murmured to herself, half a smile on her face. Her thoughts flickered back to that surreal moment they had shared on the beach earlier today.

_What was that...?_ She thought to herself. She wasn't expecting herself to answer.

_Hmm... I wonder_, Namine said in Kairi's mind. She acknowledged Namine's presence with a flick of her mind.

_What's that supposed to mean?_ She asked, annoyed.

_Nothing... I'm sure you'll get it sooner or later. For now you should concentrate on packing. The sooner you pack, the sooner you can see Sora again!_

_...And what do you mean by that?_

_Nothing... it's just that that's all you really want anymore, isn't it? To be with Sora?_

As soon as Namine said the words, Kairi knew they were true.

_So? He's my best friend and we've known each other forever!_ Kairi assured her Nobody defensively.

_Yeah. Riku's your best friend, too. And you've known him for just as long as Sora. But if your being honest with yourself, wouldn't you say that you'd rather be alone with Sora than with Riku?_

_I... That's so... _Kairi sputtered in her mind for a response.

_That's what I thought,_ Namine answered smugly after a minute of silence from Kairi.

_Now there's just one thing left to do..._ Kairi thought, lugging her suitcase as she walked out the door. She shuffled clumsily to her and Sora's Secret Place, taking out a little silver camera. Pushing away the creeping vines that had grown from the ceiling of the Secret Place, Kairi stumbled down the narrow tunnel for what seemed like forever until her eyes were assaulted by a blinding beam of moonlight coming from the Place's natural skylight. She awkwardly put down her bulky suitcase and took a moment to just breathe. She was gazing at the drawing she and Sora had done when they were 5 years old. She smiled as her eyes wandered over Sora's untidy scrawl. Her grin became more pronounced when she saw the paopu fruits they had drawn giving to one another. Kairi snapped a picture of the portraits, wanting to make sure she had it for the trip. No one knew about her frequent visits to the Secret Place.

"Kairi?"

She spun around to see Sora standing in the makeshift doorway, confusement on his face. She grinned sheepishly and serruptitiously hid the camera behind her back.

"Hey, Sora. You coming for a last look, too?" She asked, dropping her camera into her suitcase behind her. He nodded, taking a few steps forward to stand behind her.

"You were quite the artist back then," Kairi joked, gesturing to their drawings. Sora smiled, a blush creeping into his cheeks. A silence filled the cave for over a minute. Suddenly, the same energy that had flowed through them earlier that day returned. Kairi felt her heartbeat speed up hyperactively and she attempted to quiet it's loud, frantic hammering.

"...Hey, Kairi?" Sora asked, still looking at the rock.

"Yeah?"

"W...Why did you draw a paopu fruit on here?" He asked. His probing eyes were finally on hers, searching.

"I could ask you the same question," she pointed out. He shrugged.

"Fair enough. I'll tell you when you tell me. Agreed?" He said, sticking out his hand to shake on it. Their hands touched and Kairi felt a tingle go down her spine.

"Guys... you in here?" Riku called from a distance.

_Wow. He's really good at ruining your guys' moments, isn't he?_ Namine piped up.

_Shut up..._ Kairi answered, warmth spreading to her cheeks.

"Yeah, we'll be right out!" Sora called, picking up Kairi's suitcase.

"No, you don't have to do that," she protested. Sora merely smiled and let out a huff of air as he carried it, taking the rear as they traveled through the dark, winding tunnel to meet an annoyed Riku by the waterfall.

"About time," he said, turning to walk to the gummi ship, where Kairi assumed Donald and Goofy were waiting inside. She took one last look at her beloved home, hoping with all her might that this wouldn't be the last time she saw it. Sora saw the wistful look on her face and placed a comfoting hand on her shoulder.

"I know it's tough," he started, putting as much concern and sympathy into his voice as he could, "but we'll come back."

"You promise?" Kairi asked, looking at him with tear-filled eyes. His own were full of blazing determination, sympathy, and something... else. Kairi just couldn't place it.

"Promise."


	3. Chapter 3 Surprises

Hey! LV-chan here! I wanted to correct a few errors I made before because my computer was being stupid and it's gonna bother me unless I get this out there -

In chapter 1, I described Riku's eyes as "ocean-green" once. I know they're not green. It was 4 am and I was just getting over some writer's block, so I was a bit out of it. Sorry about that;;

Also, I'm gonna guess you guys weren't really complaining about my lack of talking, but sorry for not having any author's notes or anything in the last chapter. My computer is ANCIENT and let's just say I'm lucky it didn't explode last time I used it... :D Okay, I'll stop talking so you guys can read. Hope you like it.

Disclaimer - I do not own KH. And I didn't own it back in Chapter 2, when I forgot to put the disclaimer, either :D

**3. Surprises.**

The inside of the gummi ship was spacious, inviting, and a little cold. Just inside the doorway, there was the cockpit with two chairs for whoever was flying and whoever called shotgun. After that, there was a mini-doorway. On the left was a large black sofa with a single navy blue pillow. On the right was a small bed with white sheets and a solitary white pillow. A miniscule desk stood next to the foot of the bed, a silver lamp on the upper left corner.

"Wow... it looks so much smaller from the inside," Kairi breathed. Sora chuckled and Riku dropped his stuff on the floor next to the sofa before plopping down on the bed.

"Hold on tight!" Donald squawked from the captain's seat. The engine gave a deafening roar and suddenly the gummi ship was in the air, at a sickening speed. A loud crack of thunder sounded that made Kairi scream and unthinkingly cling to Sora.

"Um... Kairi... That's my keyblade arm..." Sora said, attempting to loosen her fingers on his shirt. She chuckled nervously and let go, blushing almost as deeply red as her hair.

"Idiots..." Riku muttered. Kairi stuck her tongue out at him. He stared out the window above the bed, gazing at the trillions upon trillions of stars. Sora summoned his keyblade, now in Kingdom form, seeing as he had lost all his previous keychains. Kairi called her own keyblade and looked at it fondly. It was decorated with hearts for the key and the blade was golden fading into deep red. There was an ocean wave on the one side of the pommel.

"Well, I dunno about you two, but I'm bushed," Riku yawned. He curled up into a ball on the bed and fell asleep, not a single sound escaping from between his lips. Sora yawned as well.

"I'm pretty tired, too. Are you?" He asked, his keyblade disappearing in a bliding flash of white light. Kairi nodded. She heard Goofy snoring from the shotgun seat.

"Donald, you okay to drive the night?" Sora called. He quacked an affirmative and Sora eyed the sofa furtively.

"Oh, do you want the couch tonight?" Kairi asked, getting up immediately. Sora sat down on the sofa and pulled her down next to him.

"Nah, I can sleep sitting up tonight. I'll just steal the bed tomorrow and Riku can sleep on the floor."

Kairi giggled and half-curled into a ball, scotching closer to the pillow, and regrettably farther from Sora. She yawned widely.

"G'night, Kairi," Sora said, putting his hands behind his head, his trademark pose. She answered with a muffled "Goodnight" and slipped rapidly into unconciousness.

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Kairi cracked on eye open and closed it immediately after, but it didn't stop the now flooding morning light from temporarily blinding her.

"Owwww..." she murmered, holding her head in her hands. She cautiously sat up to find that she was the first one awake. She peeked into the cockpit to see Donald snoozing in the shotgun chair and Goofy driving, keeping his eyes on the... road? Sky?

_Whatever..._ She thought wearily. Kairi looked to her right and saw Sora sleeping peacefully next to her, his arm holding her close to him. She realized from her posture that she must have been using his shoulder as a pillow and turned beet red.

"Well, aren't we cozy?" Riku asked, getting up with a smirk on his face. Kairi grimaced and shook Sora's hand away.

"Grow up," she retorted. Riku chuckled and shook his head. It wasn't long before Sora yawned loudly and opened his eyes.

"Mmmm... morning Kairi. Morning, Riku," he said brightly.

"We're almost there!" Goofy called from the cockpit.

"Almost where?" Sora asked, peering at Goofy from the sofa.

"First thing's first, we're going to Radiant Garden to warn Leon and the gang," Goofy answered. Sora suddenly got very excited.

"Yay! Kairi, you can finally meet everyone! Wait'll you see Merlin. He taught me magic. And Leon! He-"

Sora then explained every member of Radiant Garden in full detail. Kairi didn't really pay attention, and neither did Riku, by the looks of it. He was gazing out his window again, lost in thought.

"We're here!" Donald yelled from the shotgun seat. Kairi shook her head; she hadn't realized he had woken up. The gummi ship landed with a quiet thump and the door opened, sounding a soft whirring.

Donald led the way out of the ship, followed by Goofy, Riku, and then finally Kairi and Sora. They were in the would-be marketplace of the half-built world. Donald's nephews, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, came barreling into their uncle as soon as they saw him.

"Uncle Donald!" They quacked, all three giving him fierce hugs. He ruffled their feathers fondly.

"How's business, boys?" He asked in a somewhat fatherly tone.

"Great!" The ducks answered in unison.

"Hey," came a strong male voice. Kairi looked up to see a man with shoulder-length spiky brown hair that blackened at the tips. He had black eyes and wore a chain around his neck with a silver lion's head from it. He raised one gloved hand and Kairi noticed he was wearing black pants, a white shirt, and a black jacket.

_That must be Leon,_ she told no one in particular.

_Must be,_ Namine answered smartly. Kairi narrowed her eyes at her Nobody.

"Leon! Hey!" Sora called. He walked to them swiftly.

"This must be Kairi," he said before Sora could introduce her. She nodded shyly, a little intimidated by him.

"And you must be Leon. Nice to meet you," she replied. He nodded.

"Sora wasn't exaggerating when he said you were pretty," he reponded, his previous stiffness melting away. Kairi turned crimson at his words. Sora coughed loudly.

"Good to see you again, Sora, Riku, Donald, Goofy," Leon said, nodding to each of them respectively. "What brings you to Radiant Garden?"

"We've got some bad news..." Donald squawked gravely. Leon raised one eyebrow.

"Well, we've got some good news for you guys. Let's go to Merlin's and we can talk about it there," he suggested. Sora and Riku nodded and soon they were walking. Kairi giggled as a moogle they had just walked past said, "Kupo!!!!" out of the blue.

"Are they always like that?" She whispered to Sora. He grinned.

"Hey, guys!" Said a female voice. Kairi looked up to see a girl wearing a slightly skimpy black outfit with short black hair standing on a pillar and waving.

"Yuffie!" Sora called. She bounded down and gave him a nearly back-crushing hug. Kairi felt a sudden flare of furious resentment.

_Is someone jealous?_ Namine asked teasingly. Kairi smiled to herself, surprised. She would have never thought of herself as the "jealous type." Yuffie joined their group for the remaining walk to Merlin's house. When they got inside, Kairi saw a rugged man with blond hair and a toothpick in his mouth at a large computer, talking with a strong southern accent to a tall man in blue robes with a white beard and hair.

"Well, if it ain't Sora. And look, 'e brought 'is friends," the blond man said, swiveling around in his chair.

"Hey, Cid. Hey, Merlin," Sora greeted them, giving them a small wave as he acknowledged them.

"Where are Cloud and Aerith?" Leon asked, looking at Merlin.

"Oh, they're with Lifelle and Darran," Merlin answered, returning his eyes to the computer.

"They're with who?" Sora asked in confusion. Kairi racked her brain; she couldn't remember anyone named Lifelle or Darran in any of Sora's countless narrations.

"That's the good news I wanted to tell you about," Leon explained. Before he could open his mouth to explain further, the door opened and in walked who could only be Cloud and Aerith, followed closely by two people Kairi was sure Sora had never told her about. They were a boy and a girl. They both appeared to be about 17. The girl had midnight black hair about halfway down her back and light, chocolate-brown eyes. She was very pretty, in a sweet, innocent way. She wore a white tank top and black capris that swished softly when she walked. The boy had the same chocolate-brown eyes and black hair, only his was cropped around his face and spiked at the ends, almost like Sora's hair, but longer. He was just as attractive as the girl, only in a different way. He wore a crimson tee shirt and baggy black pants with numerous zippers. But the reason Sora, Kairi, and Riku's mouths dropped when they saw them was what was in their hands. Both of the strangers had keyblades drawn. The boy's was long, with a black pommel. It had threatening, jagged spikes that roughly resembled a heart with crimson dripping down the blade and fading into black. The girl's keyblade had feathery angel wings for the pommel, and what appeared to be a large, hooked wing for the blade. There were different degrees of powdery, light blue and the purest of whites for the bladelength.

"More keybladers?" Sora finally choked out.

"Hi. I'm Lifelle. Nice to meet you. You must be Sora, Riku, and Kairi," the girl said sweetly. Her keyblade disappeared in a flash of light. "This is my brother, Darran."

Darran looked up to meet Kairi's eyes, taking his own off them as he spoke. "Nice to meet you."

"Umm... this is wierd," Sora said, watching as Darran's keyblade disappeared as well.

"Their home world was destroyed by the new wave of heartless," Leon explained, "so they've been living here ever since. Their keyblades came to them about a month ago and we told them all about you guys."

"Oh... Okay," Sora answered, putting his hands behind his head again. "Awesome. So are you guys gonna come with us to save all the worlds again?"

"We were hoping to, yeah," Lifelle replied.

Kairi was starting to get uncomfortable. Darran still hadn't taken his eyes off her. She decided to break the contact and peered over at Riku, who was looking at Lifelle quietly.

"Oh, and Donald, Goofy, I have news for you," Merlin said, tapping them on the shoulders.

"More news?" Donald asked.

"I spoke with the King a few days ago. He requests that you two report to the castle for a week or two because he needs to 'tell you something important'," Merlin replied.

"But... what about the gummi ship? If we leave, how will everyone get to the other worlds to save 'em?" Goofy asked.

"No problem," Merlin said, waving his wand, "I will teleport you there myself."

And without further ado, Donald and Goofy vanished in a swish of sparkles and blue smoke.

"Wait," Riku said, finally speaking, "we're pretty cramped in the gummy ship."

"Cid's working on it right now," Aerith explained quietly. Kairi looked around; she hadn't noticed Cid left.

"Jus' finished, actually," Cid announced, swaggering into the room.

"Well, I guess we should go then," Lifelle stated. The other four keybladers nodded.

"Goodbye!" Everyone from Radiant Garden chorused.

"...'Bye," Kairi answered, stepping out the door and into the light.

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Hope you liked it, guys Reviews are always appreciated. Also, sorry again for any mistakes in previous chapters, because I know there are lots of them.

I'm almost done with chapter 4, so I'll update as soon as I can.


	4. First Flight

Hello, wonderful people who decided I'm decent enough to keep reading xD I'm sorry for not updating sooner. My computer has been in the shop for about a week... cruddy timing, I know. But it's better now! I hope to be posting at least 3 new chapters over the course of the weekend to make up for it :D

My thanks to lil'Gingergirl and Brightshadow 5 for your reviews xD You've kept an aspiring writer going! Alright, I'll shut up so you can read.

Discalimer - I don't own Kingdom Hearts or either of it's sequels. If I did, it would be rated T.

**4. First Flight.**

The fivesome of keybladers walked in silence to the newly remodled gummi ship. It was noticeably larger. When they got inside, Kairi saw that another room had been added to the rear. There were two more beds, one on the left and one on the right. A comfy-looking purple chair had been added just before the head of the bed on the left.

"Ship sweet ship," Sora sighed, flopping down on the bed in the first room. Riku got into the captain's chair.

"I guess I'll drive," he said, pushing a large red button. The engine started with a roar.

"Well... this is different," Kairi blurted out. Darran resumed to look at her with a penetrating gaze.

"You said it," Sora and Darran said in unison. The two boys suddenly locked gazes fiercely. To Kairi, it looked like they were trying to outdo each other at some unknown male sport.

"Where to first?" Riku asked from the front.

"Oh, you know where we should go? Wonderland! I haven't been there since my first adventure!" Sora suggested enthusiastically. He had stopped glaring at Darran, who merely shrugged and returned his gaze to Kairi.

"I'll go tell Riku," Lifelle announced quietly. She had been looking extremely shy and out-of-place since they got on the gummi ship. She strode to the shotgun seat and began talking with Riku, who looked a little jumpy.

"Um... So, Darran, you and Lifelle are brother and sister?" Kairi asked politely. Darran's gaze became less probing, and amusement crept into his eyes.

"We're twins, actually."

"Twins?" Sora repeated skeptically, "You're a boy and girl. And you don't look very much alike."

"Fraternal twins," Darran retorted cooly. Sora tried to hide his confusement... badly. Kairi giggled.

"We're here," Lifelle announced from the front. The three keybladers stood up and called their keyblades in a solitary flash of white light.

By the time the fivesome got out of he ship, it was very crowded in the small, cramped room.

"I'm late! I'm late! Oh no, oh no, oh no!! I can't be late!" Came a frantic, throaty voice. Kairi barely managed to jump out of the way when a small, rotund white rabbit in a shirt and glasses bounded by, peering through a large golden stopwatch.

"What was _that_?" Kairi asked, openmouthed. Sora smiled.

"That's the rabbit. He has... time-management problems," he explained, still grinning. Kairi felt the corners fo her mouth perk upward in a smirk; she remembered the creature Sora often referred to as the "loud furry headache" from Wonderland.

"Oh! Sora!" called a female voice. Kairi turned around, once again, to see someone new bounding towards the group. Darran stepped aside with a smirk on his face to let the small girl, who Kairi presumed was Alice, run into Sora and give him a back-crushing hug.

"Hey, Alice. How is everything? Is the queen beinga meanie?" Sora asked, ruffling the little girl's golden locks. She laughed.

"She calmed down a bit after she realized I wasn't the one who tried to steal her heart. But then again, she's still... the queen."

Sora chuckled. "Alice, there're some people I want you to meet. This is Riku," he gestured to the silver haired keyblader, who was grinning ear to ear, "Darran and Lifelle, our new friends," the brother and sister now stood next to each other. They bowed and curtsied respectively,"And this is my friend Kairi," Sora finished, his gaze lingering on Kairi.

"It's very nice to meet you. Sora told me all about you. He said you were very brave," she added, smiling sweetly. Alice curtsied.

"It's so nice to meet you all, but I'm afraid I have to go. The rabbit's been a little... tied up lately," Alice admitted. She and Sora exchanged a weary glance and she ran after the stressed-out animal.

Riku, Sora, and Kairi led the way through the four decreasing doors into the Bizarre Room. Darran and Lifelle followed quietly, both clutching their keyblades. The five keybladers were scrunched in the miniscule room for about half a minute before Darran finally said, "Any reason we're huge?"

"I was wondering when someone would ask that," Sora said, grinning. He picked up a bottle with an orange label took a huge gulp. The entire part shrunk down... too much.

"This is stupid," Riku complained. Lifelle smirked.

"Follow me," Sora said, waving a gloved hand. Kairi, Riku, Lifelle, and finally Darran followed him through a door leading to what could only be the queen's court. Something caught Kairi's eye as she left.

"Ummm... Sora?" She whispered in his ear.

"Yeah?"

"Was that doorknob... snoring?"

Sora grinned. "He needs his beauty sleep."

"Mmhmm... doorknob... beauty sleep... makes perfect sense."

The two started chuckling, but were soon silenced by Darran.

"Ummm... look," he said, pointing. Sora and Kairi took their eyes off one another and saw complete chaos.

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Ooooooooooouuuuuu! Cliffhanger! xD sings the "I-know-what-happens-next-song

Seriously though, thanks for reading and I'll update soon! Promise!

Remember! Reviews love!

LV-chan.


	5. Sora's Outburst

Ha! Two updates in one night! Aaah, I love writer's fever! This was one of my favorite chapters to write. I feel like I finally put some emotion into my story, instead of it being your average-everyday run-of-the-mill KH fic. I hope you guys like it :D

My thanks to Brightshadow 5 and lil' Gingergirl for their reviews and suggestions!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything associated with it, just my plotline and OCs.

**5. Sora's Outburst**

Kairi could only gape at the scene before her. All that was left of the once-merry fairyland was charred stumps, grass, and a still-smoking Ace of Spades, his card-face frozen in a fearful mask of shock.

"What... happened?" Kairi whispered, her eyes widening at the destruction she bore witness to.

"Heartless."

"Nobodies."

Riku and Sora looked at each other, smiling weakly at their simultaneous guesses.

"_Looking for me?"_ A ghostly voice asked from behind. The group turned to see Maleficent striding towards them, her cloak trailing out of the portal of darkness she had just walked out of.

"You!" Sora choked out, summoning his keyblade. Maleficent smiled menacingly.

"Go ahead, boy, attack me. See how much good it will do. A _truly_ wise person learns from their mistakes."

"Shut up!" Sora roared, charging the sorceress like a bull. He slashed at her neck, as if to decapitate her, but gasped in astonishment when his keyblade met nothing but air.

"Fool," Maleficent spat, "You think I would come here, alone, with your friends around, all of whom armed? This is a hologram I conjured."

"Then why did you come here?" Lifelle asked quietly, in her soft voice.

"Merely to warn you keybladers. I have... plans, and they will not fail. You had best prepare yourselves."

"What -" Sora started angrily, only to have the virtual Maleficent flicker and disappear without another word. He roared in fury and began hacking at the burned stumps on the ground, chips of incinerated bark flying everywhere. It wasn't long before the one he had been chopping at furiously was demolished completely. He moved on to the next stump, his eyes wild.

"Sora! Calm down," Riku commanded, seeing Kairi. She was biting her lower lip, looking quite frightened.

_I've never seen Sora that mad before..._ she thought.

_Good thing you weren't there when... _Namine started, only to silence herself suddenly.

_What? When what? _Kairi asked herself urgently. She felt Namine's refusal to speak further and returned to the world outside of her mind. Sora was glaring at the ground, his teeth clenched. The other four keybladers watching him for a moment. Finally, Sora sighed, his eyes jumping automatically to Kairi.

"You okay?" She asked, touching his arm lightly.

"I just... I just didn't think she'd be back," he finished, his Kingdom Key disappearing in a flash.

"I don't think any of us did," Riku said, putting a reassuring hand on Sora's shoulder, "but we'd best get out of here."

"What about Alice?" Lifelle asked suddenly.

"Look..." Darran interrupted, pointing to the cage Alice had been held in three years ago after being accused of stealing the Queen's heart. There laid Alice, a simple, peaceful look on her face cold, frozen face.

"...She was only... a little girl..." Lifelle whispered. She knelt down to the golden-haired girl and brushed a finger down the length of her cheek. A single chrystalline tear landed on her bright blue dress.

"Do you think Maleficent did this?" Riku asked, looking around balely.

"No," Darran shook his head, "This girl was killed with poisen, and whoever did this certainly made a show of it. Maleficent looked surprised when she came here, as well. Whoever did this wanted to announce themselves, try to intimidate us, and Maleficent virtually admitted that we're stronger than her at the moment."

"That's true," Riku nodded.

"Either way, I don't want to be here anymore. It feels... wrong," Lifelle whispered. She took one last look at the charred debris and walked back through the doorway, her bottem lip trembling. Riku followed suit after a heavy sigh, followed by Darran, Sora, and Kairi.

"...They'll pay for this," Lifelle vowed quietly, calling forth her keyblade. From the look on her face, Kairi believed her.

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"Where to now?" Riku asked, back in the pilot seat. Sora was laying on a bed in the second room on the gummi ship, staring solemnly out of the window.

"I don't care..." he said, never taking his eyes off the stars shooting past him. Kairi was sitting in the inviting purple chair at the head of Sora's bed. He was laying in it backwards, however, his feet at the head. He tucked the pillow under his spiked head.

"Sora?" Kairi asked, watching him. He didn't respond. Kairi sighed out of irritation.

"Sora!" She yelled, punching his shoe.

"Wha-OUCH!" He yelled, rubbing his sore foot.

"What'd you do that for?" He asked, putting on a mock furious face.

"Well I had to get your attention _somehow_," Kairi replied, rolling her eyes.

"Haven't you ever heard that violence is not the answer?" Sora grumbled, still rubbing his shoe.

"What was that?"

"Nothing!"

Kairi laughed. Her face fell in a minute, though, and Sora's grin followed soon after.

"What is it, Kairi?" Sora asked sincerely.

"It's you," she answered bluntly. Sora looked confused.

"Me?"

"Yeah, you. This journey is going to be miserable if you're going to clam up and act all sad everytime something goes wrong. What happened to the Sora I knew, the one who laughed all the time? What happened to that idiotic smile?" She asked, smirking a bit.

"My idiocy didn't go anywhere," Sora assured her with a smile on his face. "I guess I just didn't want you to see that. And I really didn't want you to see me get that close to losing control..." Sora shook his head.

"That wasn't you losing control?" Kairi asked in disbelief. The Sora she knew never yelled, and barely ever got mad.

"No... I only lost control one other time before, in this very gummi ship actually. Donald and Goofy had to cast Stop on me so I would calm down," he admitted sheepishly.

"And when was this?" Kairi demanded. What could have made Sora so upset?

Sora turned beet red and turned over, clearly hiding something. Kairi wanted to press him further, but his body language made it clear that this was a matter he wasn't going to be discussing anytime soon.

"Hey, guys. We're gonna be bunking here tonight and we'll get to the Coliseum tomorrow morning," Riku announced, walking into the room and flopping on the bed.

"What the... who's driving?!" Sora asked, getting up so fast Kairi was amazed he didn't do something to his back.

"Don't worry, Darran's in the pilot seat," Riku replied, fluffing up a pillow. Sora sat back down with a grunt and folded his arms over his chest.

"What?" Riku asked, a glint in his eyes. Kairi sensed he knew something she didn't.

"I just... never mind," Sora growled, harrumphing loudly. Kairi rolled her eyes, thinking to herself, _boys..._ She checked her small, silver watch and was shocked to see it was already 1:30 am.

"Woah! I didn't even notice the time!" She said, stifling a yawn. Now that she knew how late it really was, she couldn't help but feel her eyes drooping...

"I'm gonna go change..." she yawned, exposing her brilliant pearly-whites. She grabbed her bag of clothing and went into the bathroom, changing quickly. When she came out, she was wearing white bunny slippers, blue plaid boxers, and a green shirt that had a smiley face on it. Riku smirked.

"What?" She asked defesively, twisting back to see if one of her slippers was dirty.

"Nice jammies," he snickered. Kairi sniffed and flipped her hair back, stalking out of the room. She glanced at Sora, who also had a stupid grin on his face.

"I expected more maturity from you," she reprimanded him disapprovingly. He fought back a fit of giggles.

"Really? You shouldn't've," he retorted, smiling again. Kairi stuck her tongue out at him and went into the other room, laying on her back on the couch. She got out the little CD player she had thought to bring and closed her eyes, letting memories and images flit from behind her closed eyes. She drifted between states of conciousness and sleep, not really caring which she was in. Finally, darkness pressed down on her mind like a thick wool blanket and she thought no more.

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There ya go! Chapter 5! Suggestions on anything and of course reviews are always appreciated :D

LV-chan.


	6. New Teammate, Old Friend

Hey. Sory I couldn't update sooner I couldn't log in last night due to "heavier than expected traffic" or something... grr

My thanks to Brightshadow 5, who supplied me with more than enough ideas and suggestions for upcoming chapters :D. Don't worry, they'll be used next chapter!

Disclaimer: It would be nice, but sadly no.

**6. New Teammate, Old Friend.**

"Kairi. Kairi! Wake up!" A voice called, jerking Kairi out of the deep sleep she had been in. She gradually returned to conciousness, her lips pulling downward into a grumpy scowl.

"Go 'way..." she grumbled, turning her back to whoever was trying to wake her. Whoever it was poked her - hard - in the back.

"Ow!" She mumbled, slapping the hand away.

"Kaaaaaaairi... waaaaaaake up... rise and shine..." she voice said softly. She recognized to be Sora and grinned blearily.

"Sora, go back to sleep. It's only..." she trailed off, looking at her watch, "Holy crap! It's already 11?! Why didn't you wake me sooner?!" Kairi jumped up, the little earphones tugged downward by the CD player that had just fallen to the floor.

"Ow... Stupid... CD... OW!" She screeched, stumbling around the room, covered by a thick blue blanket. She could hear Sora snickering at her through her sluggish, thick haze of concentration.

"Shut... it..." she grumbled, tripping once more on the blanket. She clumsily made her way to the bathroom where she brushed her teeth, brushed her hair, and got changed.

Kairi came out, feeling much better. Today she wore a plain maroon polo shirt and a long, slightly ruffled black skirt. Riku was laying on his bed, playing his GameBoy quietly. He was obviously very absorbed in it. His bright blue eyes never left the little screen and he had his "concentration face" on, as Kairi liked to call it. Darran was reading a little book with a black leather cover. It didn't seem to have a title and said nothing on the spine or the back. His chocolate-brown eyes never left his book and he looked thoughtful.

Kairi walked into the next room and was met by Lifelle, who was writing in a plain, white notebook. Kairi sat next to her, smiling brightly.

"Good morning!" She greeted her fellow keyblader cheerily.

"Morning!" Lifelle beamed, finishing a sentence and closing the notebook. She folded her hands over he knees.

"How did you sleep?" She asked politely.

"Great! And you?" Kairi returned, glad to have some female companionship.

"Excellent, thanks. So, what's this Coliseum place like? Sora said he told you all about it," Lifelle inquired, pushing a stray strand of midnight-black hair out of her face.

"Tell me about it he did," Kairi answered, sighing, "Let's just say he doesn't forget any details."

Lifelle giggled knowingly. Boys would be boys.

"Well, he said that that's where his friends Hercules, Meg, and Phil are. Hercules is apparantly a god with unbelieveably strength. Meg is his girlfriend; Sora said that she's not shy about telling you what she thinks. Phil is Hercules' trainer and good friend. He's also, if I remember Sora's many... many... stories, half a goat," Kairi finished, the smile on her face almost apologetic.

"Half... a goat?" Lifelle asked, raising an eyebrow. Kairi shrugged. The two girls giggled quietly.

"Oy! We're here!" Sora called from the pilot's seat. Kairi ran up to the front and saw the mammoth arena, where thousands of spectators watched two figures join again and again, neither seeming to do any damage. The gummi ship landed with a muted thud and a monotonous whirring signaled the door to the sky craft opening.

Kairi stepped out the the gummi ship and instantly but her hand on her forehead, sheilding her eyes. She cursed the sun over and over again as she was followed by Sora, Riku, Lifelle, and Darran. She whistled.

"Wow... you weren't exaggerating when you said this place was huge, Sora," Kairi laughed shakily. He beamed and shook his head.

"Well, if it ain't the squirt!" Called a gruff, nasaly voice. Kairi readjusted her eyes to the blinding sunlight to see who could only be Phil strutting towards the five.

"And he's brought friends!" The muscular bodybuilder behind him chipped it.

"Phil! Herc!" Sora called, shiking hands with the latter.

"Oh, sure, forget about the lady," a slender woman in a draping pink dress offered disapprovingly, shaking her head.

"Oh, I was just saving the best for last," Sora replied apologetically.

"So, who are you friends?" Meg asked, gesturing to the four keybladers she had never seen before.

"Well, this is Riku, our new friends Lifelle and Darran," Sora shot a less-than-friendly look to him as he uttered his name, "and this is Kairi," he finished, his tone softer for some reason. Kairi smiled sweetly at Phil, Hercules, and Meg.

"Listen, kid, you got great timin'," Phil started, not wasting any time, "because the Games are back up and the tournament is just starting."

"Great!" Sora replied enthusiastically. The group started walking at a quicker-than-usual pace towards the lobby.

"There's a catch, though," Hercules warned. "We're doing the games in threes, so you guys will have to draw straws to see who's with who. The odd two out will have to have a new teammate."

"Okay, sounds fair," Riku interrupted, once they were in the small lobby.

"Here you go," Meg said, reaching into her pocket and pulling out five straws. She made them all the same length at her fingertips and offered Darran the first hand. He plucked a straw from her fingers and didn't seem to react at all when it turned out to be one of the three normal length straws. Sora picked next and punched a fist in the air out of glee in seeing his straw was short and stubby, thereby putting Sora on team without Darran. Riku picked next and drew a regular length straw. He called his Way to Dawn and sliced the air with it a few times. Lifelle was the second-to-last to pick, and a small smile arose on her face when she saw the straw she chose to be long and slender. Meg dropped the final, half-length straw into Kairi's hand.

"Alright, we're on the same team!" Sora said, giving her a high five. When she pulled away, her hand tingled warmly and she knew it had nothing to do with the forocity of Sora's hand slapping against hers.

"So, who will be our teammate?" Kairi asked politely, looking around as if imagining the mystery person to appear in a poof of smoke.

"He should be here any minute," Phil said, checking a long list of participants that trailed along the cold, stone floor.

"Well, what's his name?" Sora asked, peeking over the old goat's shoulders to glance at the list.

"His name is..." Phil mumbled, his eyes moving to and fro across the colossal parchment, "is-"

The sound of footsteps heralded the newcomer. Kairi, Riku, and Sora stared in shock at the man, who was grinning ear to ear.

"His name is Axel. Got it memorized?"

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xD Axel needed to come back sooner or later, and my obsessive fangirlness simply wouldn't let this story be Axel-less any longer. Hope you liked this chapter. Sorry for the lack of fluffiness I'l add more next chapter, trust me. But you guys should know that there will be no admitting until much later in the story. Let's let poor little Sora experience some jealousy first :D

This story reeeeeally needs reviews, so REVIEW.

Please?

...Pleeeeeease??

xD

LV-chan


	7. Rage

Once again, my thanks to Brightshadow 5, who has greatly added to this fic.

Disclaimer: If I owned it, it would be a lot gorier.

**7. Rage.**

Sora was the first to break the silence.

"You... Axel... But... You died! I was there! I saw you attack those Nobodies with everything you had, and then fade away..."

"Gee, don't act like you're happy to see me," Axel said, rolling his eyes. Sora smiled and, for the moment, seemingly didn't care how Axel had come back from the dead. The two shook hands and smiled.

Kairi got over her shock and realized she was overjoyed Axel was alive. Not fully caring what she was doing, she ran full-speed into Axel and gave him a back-breaking hug.

"Need... air..." He gasped, though he didn't try to fight her off. When Kairi looked up, her eyes were shining with fresh tears.

"I just wanted to... thank you," she explained. Axel looked confused.

"Thank me? I kidnapped you, remem-"

"But, in doing so, you got me off the island," Kairi reminded him, "and I got to see Sora so much... Sora and Riku so much sooner!"

"You're really happy to see me?" Axel asked. Kairi nodded, not realized she was still hugging him.

"Kairi, you might wanna back off," Riku joked, "You're making Sora jealous."

Kairi turned around much faster than necessary and saw Sora's face, pink with a fresh blush. While she was laughing on the inside, she couldn't help but wonder something on the inside. _Why would me hugging Axel make Sora jealous?_

_You really don't get it, do you?_ Namine asked suddenly. Kairi was used to her popping up whenever she wanted by now.

_What do you mean?  
I mean that Sora's the jealous type._

_But why would he be jealous? We're just friends!_

_Sure. Keep telling yourself that. But think back to that morning two days ago when you realized that you had been using Sora's shoulder for a pillow._

Kairi turned beet red, which earned a laugh from Namine.

_What? _

_You went all red,_ Namine told her smugly.

_So? That doesn't mean anything._

_Oh? So, if you fell asleep and woke up with Riku's arm around you, would you be as embarrassed?_

_Sure..._

_You're so full of it._

Kairi returned to the outside world in confusion. These cryptic little remarks were becoming aggrivating and she always felt like Namine knew something she didn't.

"Um... Kairi. We're about to start the first round. You wanna come back to planet Earth?" Sora asked, waving a hand in front of her face and snapping a few times. She shook her head, clearing it, and fake-smiled brightly.

"Yep! Who are we facing first?"

"Just the normal 20 or 30 heartless. Not too bad," Sora responded, calling his keyblade to his hand. Phil spotted it still in it's Kingdom Key form.

"Kid, you might wanna put this on," he suggested, dropping a keychain into Sora's palm. He attached it to his keyblade and it morphed immediately. The hilt had cloud-like swirls that snaked up the length of the blade. The key portion was a medly of lightning bolts, all vivid yellow and dangerously jagged. Sora pricked his finger to test it.

"Ow!" He yelled, pulling his bleeding finger away from the edge of the keyblade and sucking on it. He whimpered pitifully. Darran laughed quietly, leering at Sora with scorn.

"Good job," Riku said, rolling his eyes. Kairi and Lifelle chuckled softly. Sora shot them a mock hurt glare.

"Alright, Darran, Lifelle, and Riku, your turn!" Phil said, leading them to the arena. Kairi, Sora, and Axel, who had been spinning his chakrams around his hands lazily, followed as well and were assualted by a defeaning roar coming from the thousands of spectators in the stands. A brawny, brown-haired man strutted from the center of the arena, looking pleased with himself.

"Round 2," Phil yelled into a newly-acquired megaphone, "is the team of Riku, Lifelle, and Darran, against these formidible heartless!"

As if on cue, 25 bubbled of darkness poofed in the arena and an array of shadows, soldiers, and blue rhapsodies were before them in a split second.

"Ah, the fire-resistant ones. This will be fun," Axel muttered, grinning wolfishly. He, Sora, and Kairi, watched as their friends cut through the ranks of enemies with ease. It was hard to decide who was the most skilled in fighting, for they all fought in different styles. Riku was keen on slashing and calling forth a hovering shield in the nick of time. He had not even been touched yet. Lifelle was sprightly in her attacking, and she tripped out of hte way of the soldier's she was fighting's swipes of his claws daintily before neatly slicing through it with ease. Darran was very quick, and he never had to strike twice to fell as heartless. Overall, the battle lasted about a minute long. Phil deemed them the winners, earning them an earsplitting cheer from the crowds.

"You guys were great!" Kairi congradulating them.

"Thanks," Darran replied, actually cracking half a smile. He looked quite proud of himself and smirked at Sora, who had his eyes narrowed and was kicking a rock across the arena.

"Round three! May I present Sora, Kairi, and Axel!" Phil announced. The crowds cheered, if possible, louder than before as the trio watched the same types of heartless as the last round appear in a flash of swirling black and purple.

"You ready?" Sora asked. Kairi nodded. Sora already knew that she was just as good as he was with a keyblade, having trained during their year in between returning to the island and being summoned to save the worlds again.

A nod from Axel, and the three fighter sprang to action. Kairi smiled as heartless after heartless fell from her blade, vanishing in a puff of smoke or darkness. She dogded a soldier's slumsy swipe and aimed a blow at his neck, only to be stopped mid-swing by the creature being incinerated before her cerulean eyes. She looked to her right to see Axel grinning, having the time of his life. She spun around again to watch Sora take care of the last 3 shadows with a single swipe of his keyblade.

_Wow... Sora's so..._

_So what?_ Namine asked in the back of her mind.

_Nothing,_ Kairi snapped.

Sora turned to smile at Kairi, putting his hands behind his head in his trademark pose. His grin was short-lived, however. The gate separating the arena from the notorious Underworld was thrown about 50 feet from where it was, mammoth teeth marks scoring the deep metal. Saliva coated the gate.

"Oh no..." Sora said to himself. The spectators in the stands screamed and hurried to flee the stage as a massive, 3-headed black dog ran out of the Underworld, it's red eyes on Sora and all three sets of teeth bared. It roared with unmatched ferocity and rushed towards the keyblader, it's claws leaving deep scratches on the ground it tore up.

"Sora!!" Kairi screamed, running to be alongside with him. He shot her a wild, scared look.

"Kairi! Stay back! It's me Cerberus is after!" He warned, dodge rolling from the creature's massive jaws.

"I don't care!" Kairi yelled back, rushing at the beast. She ignored Sora's cry of "No!" as she flung herself at the colossal canine, using it's head as a springboard. She landed on it's back and was immedately flung off.

"Kairi! No!" Sora yelled, though Kairi could barely hear him. Her head smacked against the concrete floor-level stand and she felt the ground around her head suddenly get very sticky and warm.

"So... ra..." She tried to say, but her tongue felt thick and it was hard to speak. Kairi's eyes fluttered to see Sora holding her head and Axel, Darran, Lifelle, and Riku in the background, battling Cerberus. Sora was screaming something, but it was like watching a someone speak in a silent movie. Sora raised one hand and Kairi saw it come back from the back of her head drenched in blood. Her blood.

Sora desparately fumbled in his pocket and threw a potion in the air. Kairi felt her head get very warm and then very cold. She shook her head as he hearing rapidly returned.

"Kairi! Kairi, are you okay? Kairi, say something!!" Sora pleaded, sounding close to tears.

"I... I'm okay..." She mumbled, fighting back the sudden blackness of exhaustion and blood loss that was creeping around the corners of her eyes.

"Oh, thank god..." Sora whispered, half-picking up Kairi to hug her. She felt her heart sputter hyperactively and her hands get clammy.

"Well, isn't this sweet?" Came a nasty, leering voice. The two teenagers came out of their embrace and saw Hades, Lord of the Dead, standing before them.

"You... it was you!" Sora snarled. He let go of Kairi and stood up, his hands shaking. Kairi saw his eyes almost instantly turn blood red and shot as he growled gutterally deep in his throat. His clothes started to burn, literally burn, and change from their normal colors to deep, blood red and pitch black. Soon the flames ungulfed his entire body, and his keyblade turned ghostly black with a dark smoke swirling from the tip.

"Sora..." Kairi whipered, her eyes wide and frightened. He turned to look at her with wild, uncontrollable eyes. Eyes that Kairi didn't know. She couldn't see the playfulness or laughter she was so accustomed to seeing in them and at that moment she knew the Sora standing before her was the not the Sora she had grown up with, but a new Sora that she was quite frankly scared shitless of.

He returned his feral gaze to the Lord of the Dead, who seemed as confused as Kairi felt. Not-Sora held up a single hand, black and crimson flames swirling around it, and shot a single ball of Hellfire at the death god. It hit Hades with unexpected force and sent him flying backwards 20 feet. Sora sped up inhumanly fast behind him and began hacking and slashing at his neck. Spurts of blood flew from his body at each slice, yet Not-Sora seemed uncapable of stopping himelf.

"Sora! Sora, he's dead! Stop!" Kairi yelled. Not-Sora didn't seem to hear her and kept slashing at his neck, blood running down his pitch-black blade. Hades' cold, yellow eyes were glazed over in shock.

"Sora, STOP!" Kairi yelled, preparing to run to his side. A gloved hand restrained her, however.

"Let me go! He's not... Sora..." she screeched, struggling against the arms that were holding her tighter than iron chains.

"He's... beyond control," Axel said, watching Not-Sora slash at the body unrelentlessly.

"But... What happened to him? Let me go! I need to find out what's wrong with Sora!" Kairi screamed, struggling futilely against Axel. He didn't budge an inch.

They stood there, watching the creature slice what was once Hades to ribbons. After about a minute, the flames surrounding Sora's body faded almost as quickly as they had come and his clothes glowed for a moment before returning to normal. He took a step back and turned around to face Axel, Kairi, and Darran, Lifelle, and Riku, who had just finished silencing Cerberus, whose body was slumped lifelessly on the stands opposite them. Sora's eyes were wide, horror-struck, and thankfully back to normal.

"What... did I do?" Sora asked, his voice barely a whisper. He looked down at his hands, covered in Hades' blood, and blacked out.

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Sorry to all you squeamish people out there! There's gonna be much more to come.

I'm not going to post my next chapter without at least 5 more reviews (the count is at 6 now), so if you want to see more, please click the button!

LV-chan.


	8. Explanations

Heya! Sorry it took my so long to update... but, you guys should really be thanking me for updating with only 4 new reviews, even though I said I wouldn't update again until I got 5 more. glare

Just kidding! You guys know I love ya xD Thanks again to Brightshadow 5 for ideas. You're my cure for writer's block! Peace.

Disclaimer: I wish.

**8. Explanations.**

Kairi held Sora's hand as Axel carried him swiftly to the gummi ship. After uttering a hurried goodbye to Phil, Hercules, and Meg, the routine whirring heralded the door opening and the company filed in. Axel laid Sora down on the couch he had shared with Kairi two nights ago and stepped back, a stern look on his face. Kairi never let go of his hand, which was still extremely warm, almost fevered.

"Sora... What happened to you?" Kairi whispered, squeezing his hand a little in an effort to revive him.

"This is a drive form... and a dangerous one at that," Riku explained, a knowing look in his light blue eyes. Kairi shot him a pleading look.

"This reminds me of his old anti-form, in a way. But even then, he was never this out-of control. It's a good thing he fainted when he did, or he probably would've attacked us."

"That's a lie!" Kairi objected. "Sora would never attack his friends!"

"But that wasn't Sora," Axel interrupted. "Before this happened, back when he was normal, I could see Roxas in his eyes. When he transformed into that _thing_, Roxas was gone."

_He speaks truth,_ Namine agreed, _I couldn't contact Roxas like I usually can._

_You can talk to Roxas through Sora? _Kairi asked in surprise.

_Yeah. Sora can't feel it though,and he doesn't know yet._

_Wait... So can you hear Sora's thoughts, same as you hear mine?_

_Yes. And Roxas can hear yours. But we agreed to not tell our others what either of you are saying._

_Aww, come on! Did you hear what he was thinking back when he was transformed?_

_...No. His mind was beyond reach. It was as though an animal had taken over._

Namine's words chilled Kairi to her core.

"I'm afraid all we can do now is wait," Lifelle said quietly.

"And while we're waiting, care to explain how you're still alive?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow at Axel, who half-smiled.

"Sure. Here's the thing - I didn't die. I was a Nobody, and to die, you have to exist in the first place. My body disintegrated, but my... memory, soul, whatever you want to call it, was strong enough to live on. I was reborn from nothingness once again, in that in-between place where I 'died.' After you defeated Xemnas, remember all those little hearts that came out of Kingdom Hearts? Well, lucky for me, mine was there. My heart returned to my body, and... here we have it," Axel explained sauvely.

"Then why do you still look the same?" Riku questioned. "Your hair... those markings under your eyes..."

"Well, I could change back to my normal, human form if I wanted to, but I find the red hair and eye markings are just _so_ much cooler," Axel smiled.

"No cloak?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow. Kairi took her anguished eyes off Sora for a moment to notice for the first time what Axel was wearing - khaki pants and and a black sweater. (A/N: If any of you have heard Sadie Hawkin's Dance by relient k, this is for you xD)

"Kairi..." Came a tortured whisper. She turned her agonized eyes back to Sora, who was mumbling in his half-coma. His hand began to grow clammy within Kairi's and his forehead broke out in a fevered sweat. A moment of this, and he started thrashing back and forth on the sofa he unconciously shared with Kairi.

"Sora? Sora!" Kairi called. His brow furrowed for a second, though his gloved hand never strayed from hers. After a minute of his grim on her own nervous hand, his bright blue eyes fluttered and eventually opened.

"Sora," Kairi breathed in relief. It was him. Not the... thing he had been about an hour ago. He smiled weakly, his eyes only on her. It wasn't long, though, before his smile slid off his face and was replaced with a disgusted frown.

"What... Did I do?" He asked, his voice no more than a whisper. Kairi laughed; she was just happy to have him back. Finally. She felt as if the past hour was never going to end.

"I think I might be able to help with that," Darran answered, standing up. He faced the group of keybladers and Axel. "Sora _did_ go into a Drive form, but different from anything he's ever gone through before. It seems his transformations are now triggered by emotions. When he changed earlier, he was mad - madder than he's been in a long time," the pale keyblader explained confidently. A small voice in Kairi's head - Namine, she gathered - wondered how he knew such things. It occured to her that she really didn't care at the moment.

"He's right... I was mad just before that happened. Really mad. And next thing I knew, those flames were crawling up my body... my clothes changed... my keyblade burned in my hand. I could feel my anger taking over, and I couldn't tell the difference between friend and enemy anymore. The only thing I could think of was attack - attack Hades... I never meant to k-"

"Sora, it's _okay_," Kairi assured him. She could see his eyes get wide and panicked, and she didn't want him to dwell on the past. "You're back to normal now. And at least next time you go into this... Rage Form, we'll know what it is," she finished, unknowingly giving Sora's hand a gentle squeeze. He appeared startled that his hand was still in hers, and he looked down at them in reflex. Kairi's hand ripped out of his, embarrassed.

"Sorry..." she muttered, looking down. Whe her anxious gaze returned to his, it was filled with probing confusion. She turned back to Axel, Riku, Darran, and Lifelle, all of whom had different expressions on their faces. Riku was rolling his eyes. Axel was smirking, clearly enjoying some private joke. Lifelle was giggling quietly to herself. Darran was glaring at Sora with poorly concealed resentment.

"Well, now that that's all said and done, I have a message from the King, Donald, and Goofy," Axel stated, twirling his chakrams around in his long, pale hands lazily.

"A message from the King?" Sora echoed.

"Yeah, from the King. K-I-N-G. Got it memorized?" The former Nobody answered, enjoying his catch-phrase usage. (A/N: Sorry. I really can't help myself where Axel is concerned. )

"What did he say?" Riku interrupted.

"Well, after I got myself... together... I decided to help you guys out. Try to make up for what I did to you two," - a nod at Kairi and Sora - "and he told me to come with you guys and give you this message:

'Tell Sora, Riku, Kairi, Lifelle, and Darran,'" Axel relayed, throwing his voice to sound like the mouse King's, "'That the heartless are back, which you can bet means Nobodies will be back, too. Tell them I'd like them to go around the worlds just like last time and seal them, so nothin' bad will happen to the folks livin' there. And tell 'em I'm really sorry for makin' them do this again'," Axel finished, his voice dwindling back to normal at the end of his declaration.

"What about Donald and Goofy?" Sora asked.

"They'll be staying with the King for a little, to help with figuring out just what's going on," Axel replied, spinning a chakram around one of his fingers. A spark appeared at one end.

"So you'll be coming with us?" Kairi asked, hoping the answer would be yes. Axel nodded. She gave a small smile; she was really growing to like Axel. He was like a big brother... with nice hair. (A/N: No, this is not and will never be a KairixAxel story. Sorry to all those that were hoping it might be P)

"Where to?" Asked Lifelle quietly. Kairi's eyes flickered to the pilot seat in surprise; she hadn't realized Lifelle had moved.

"Whatever's closest," Riku answered. His voice had a softer edge to it than Kairi was accostomed to.

"Looks like... Land of the Dragons. We'll get there about noon tomorrow," the lithe keyblader called from the cockpit. Kairi nodded and looked back down at Sora, who had fallen asleep again.

_Awww... Sora looks so... cute,_ Kairi thought to herself, watching as he twitched a little in his quick sleep.

_What was that?_ Namine asked devilishly.

_Shut up!_

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There ya go! Chapter 8. What do you think? (Psst - You can tell me by clicking the button. Come on, you know you want to xD)

Oh, and if you review, I guarentee that I'll reply back from now on. I've been kinda bad about it lately, but that's only because I usually check my email at home, and FanFic is blocked there. Luckily, LV-chan found a proxy that actually wasn't blocked. cue choirs of angels So, I promise I'll get back to you from now on, my wonderful reviewers.

As always, thanks for liking my writing enough to keep reading. Hugs and kisses to all! mwah

LV-chan.


	9. Missing

Hey guys! Here's my next chapter - Sorry it's so short. I just wanted to post SOMETHING so that I can read all of your nice (and boo-chan's mean) reviews when I get home from tutoring xD

(Yeah, LV-chan's failing something. Math... Bleh. In the words of Shakespeare, I do indeed bite my thumb at math.)

Disclaimer: If I did, there would be more vampires.

**9. Missing.**

Sora slept on and off that night. He would wake up suddenly, feverish and panting, and fall back asleep in less than a minute with mumbled nonsense. The few times Kairi could talk to him, she asked him if he was feeling sick, and he replied every time "Nope!" with an idiotic grin on his face. Nevertheless, Kairi stayed by his side to make sure he didn't get any sicker than he looked.

"...Tonight, okay?" She heard Riku say, snapping her out of her worried daydreams.

"Sorry, what?" She asked, yawning. Kairi glanced at her watch - it was 1 am. Riku rolled his eyes before answering.

"I said, I'll drive the ship tonight, okay?"

"Yeah, sounds good," She responded vaguely, shooting an anxious glance at Sora, who had just coughed fitfully. His eyes fluttered for a moment, then he relapsed into his touch-and-go slumber.

"Kairi," Riku said, gently putting a hand on her shoulder, "He'll be okay. Sora's survived much worse than this. Why don't you just get some rest?"

Kairi yawned again and looked at Sora once more. He did seem to be okay, and she _was_ awfully tired...

"Yeah, you're probably right," she nodded her head sluggishly in lazy agreement. Riku smiled and went to the cockpit, relieving a droopy-lidded Lifelle from her driving duties.

Kairi claimed the bed across from Sora quietly, climbing under the covers. She kicked off her shoes, deciding she was too tired to get changed or even retrieve her CD player from the other side of the room. A small clock she had never noticed before ticked loudly on the wall above Sora's head. It was the last thing she saw before plummeting into the sweet black that sleep brought to her mind.

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Kairi awoke the next morning slowly, moving the muscles in her legs and arms lazily as she sped back to conciousness. She got out of bed and stretched, reaching her fingertips almost to the ceiling of the gummi ship.

"Sleeping in your clothes, Kairi? Your mom wouldn't approve," a familiar voice chided her, mock disapproval lacing his tone.

"Sora! Are you feeling any better?" Kairi asked her friend happily, glad to see he had lost the sick, pale color in his face and his eyes wre clear blue again, instead of cloudy like they had been the previous night.

"Much. We're gonna land in like, a minute, just so you know," he replied, looking once again at her rumpled clothing. Bright red splattered Kairi's cheeks and she grabbed her bag swiftly, fast-walking to the bathroom. Sora's echoing chuckles only concentrated those crimson blushed until one blended in with the other, forming a bright bruise-like stain on her cheeks. She changed quickly, eager to get out of her old clothes and into a new, fresh wardrobe. She brushed her teeth and hair carefully, grimacing at the latter before pulling a brush painfully through the tangled mess. It took her about 5 minutes to get it back into recognizeable neatness.

"Wow... a change of clothes sure makes a difference," Sora whistled as Kairi walked back. She smiled shyly, a faint pink creeping into her cheeks once more.

"Landing!" Riku grunted from the pilot's seat. Lifelle walked into the room Sora and Kairi were in swiftly, smiled at each of them and whispering a good morning. Darran followed, his jet-black spikes bouncing a bit as he walked. Last came Axel, who had been sleeping on the floor of Lifelle and Darran's room. He yawned loudly, obviously having just been awoken. Soon the door opened and the keybladers stepped into the foreign world, which was overgrown with bamboo and leaves.

A little red lizard-like creature slithered up to them almost as soon as their feet touched the ground. Kairi recalled it to be Mushu, the dragon who was sent by her ancestors to "protect" her from the dangers of dressing as a man to be in the army.

"Sora! Sora! Thank God you've come!" The little dragon called frantically, his eyes wide and frightened.

"Mushu, what's wrong?" Sora asked, drawing his Olympia-chained keyblade.

"Mulan's gone missing!"

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Cliffhanger! I know, probably one you don't care about, but I like cliff-hangers xD They make me feel important for being the only one who knows what's going to happen next.

And sorry for only having one Axeltastic sentence. (TT)

LV-chan.

P.S. - Sasuke plushies to all my reviewers! (Except for boo, because she doesn't count. She's not cool like that. xD)


	10. Almost

Hey guys I wasn't going to update again tonight, but I just felt so bad about leaving you with such a crappy chapter after making you wait, so here ya go. It's fluff-tastic xD

(Lizibeth-chan: I KNOW IT'S CORNY. You don't need to tell me about it. :D)

Disclaimer: If I did, this would have happened.

**10. Almost.**

"Wait, who's this Mulan?" Axel asked lazily, rubbing his eyes. He yawned once more.

"She lives here," Sora reminded the former Nobody quietly.

"Oh yeah, cross-dresser girl. Think we oughta go find 'er?" Axel asked, summoning his chakrams in a burst of fire. Sora gave him one of his what-an-idiot looks and sped towards the camp where he had first met General Shun-Yu, who was now engaged to Mulan, if Kairi remembered correctly.

"Wait up!!" Mushu called after the spiky-haired keyblader, scurrying as fast as his little legs could carry him. Kairi followed soon after. She crept through the thick undergrowth of bamboo and leaves, crouching down at times so she wouldn't be overcome by the encompassing foliage. A dim light burst through the leaves, making Kairi gasp with pain, her eyes not adjusting fast enough. Closing her eyes before they could be assaulted by the radiance again, she stretched her arms out in front of her so she wouldn't run into anything. It wasn't long before she felt something at her fingertips; a thick fabric. Kairi reopened her eyes and blinked a few times to dissapate the blinding sunlight, only to see Sora in front of her, not moving an inch.

"Sora? What's wrong?" She asked hesitantly, poking him in the back gently. He fell forward, rolling over mid-fall. Kairi let out an earsplitting scream at the sight before her.

Sora's aqua eyes were glazed over, widened in horror and defiance. Two holes glistened damply in his forehead, damp with fresh, oozing blood. Two small pinpricks glowed at his throat, the tiniest drop of the crimson liquid escaping from the one closest to Kairi. A small knife was buried in Sora's chest, the blade sticking out a bit and drenched in blood, which was still pouring out of the wound. It slowly ran down his shirt, soaking the material through.

"Sora!" Kairi choked between sobs, crashing to her feet beside him. At the sound of her voice, Sora's head snapped back to life. He looked at her the same glazed, defiant eyes, though they were laced with a deep maroon-red; hungry. The maroon soon took over his irises until they were glaring pools of bloodshot starvation.

"Kairi..." Sora leered, his upper lip moving to reveal two glistening, sharp fangs. Kairi only screamed louder and louder.

"Kairi..." Sora repeated again, sitting up slowly, the knife still in his chest. The holes in his forehead only produced more blood, which ran down Sora's face and neck. He licked his lips, savoring his own blood on his tongue. It seemed to withdraw the beast inside him. He lunged at Kairi, fangs bared-

"Kairi? KAIRI!"

Someone was slapping her. Kairi sat up with a start, feeling numerous beads of sweat pouring down her forehead. She sat up to see Sora gazing at her, his eyes frightened.

"What... Where..." Kairi began, looking around wildly. Sora put a finger to her lips, pressing down gently.

"You were having a nightmare. I heard you screaming and tried to wake you up, but then you started screaming 'Stop, Sora,' so Riku slapped you a few times," Sora explained, gesturing to the silver-haired keyblader standing beside him.

"It was... a dream?" Kairi asked, wanting so badly for it to be true. Sora nodded, his eyes still worried.

"Riku?" Lifelle called from the cockpit. He glanced swiftly in her direction.

"You gonna be okay?" He whispered to Kairi, who nodded without a thought. Riku got up without another word and went to Lifelle. Sora and Kairi watched him go, their eyes following him like vultures following a dying animal on the plains. As soon as he was out of earshot, Sora started questioning Kairi again.

"What happened in your dream?" He asked, his voice low. Kairi shook her head.

"It was nothing. Just a bad dream..." She murmered, averting her eyes. She knew Sora would be able to tell if she was lying if her could see her traitorous baby-blues.

"You were screaming my name, like... like you were scared of me. Terrified. Please, I _need_ to know what happened," Sora pleaded, the agony in his eyes heartbreaking.

"Okay..." Kairi breathed, unable to tear her eyes from his, "We were in Mulan's world. We had all just come out of the gummi ship, and you were back to normal - you weren't sick anymore. Mushu came running up to you and said that Mulan was. Then Axel asked who she was again, and you explained, then you went through a tunnel to go find her. I followed you and when I came out of the tunnel, you weren't moving. I pushed you a little and you fell to th ground. Th-there were holes in your forehead... and your neck... and a knife in your chest," Kairi breathed deeply, trying to calm herself. Sora waiting, his gaze intent. She shuddered briefly before continuing her narration.

"Then I said your name, and you... came back to life. You started saying my name and you sat up. Y-you had... fangs. You tasted your blood on your lips and your eyes turned red and then... then you attacked me," Kairi finished, ripping her tear-filled eyes from his bewildered ones.

"Kairi..." He whispered, determination coloring his tone. She sniffled and looked back at him.

"It was a dream, Kairi. I promise, no, I _swear_ that I will never, ever hurt you. You believe me... right?" He asked, his ocean eyes probing hers. She thought back to when he had gone into that sick, bloodthirsty Drive in the Coliseum, biting her lip. But then she remembered the way his eyes had been then, wild and feral. They weren't Sora's eyes. And that thing that had almost killed her was _not_ Sora.

"Yes," she whispered. Sora breathed a silent sigh of relief. The two teens hugged, and Kairi felt the atmosphere in the room change. Her hands started to get cold and clammy once more behind Sora's back. Her heartbeat was racing, and she hoped desparately that Sora couldn't hear it. The hug lasted longer than it should have, but Kairi was happy just to be sitting in Sora's arms. She breathed in the smell of his spiky brown hair; it smelled like soap. Regrettably, Sora pulled away, much too soon for Kairi. His eyes were unsure, as if he was going back and forth about something in his head. Kairi didn't even want to think of what, afraid of being wrong. Slowly, he inclined his head towards hers, the unknown conflict going on behind those beautiful eyes resolved. Kairi's breathing became shallow, but she moved her head in as well, just as slowly as he was. Their faces were mere inches apart when Axel walked in the room, coughing in his half-awake state of mind. Kairi pulled away instantly, the familiar blush flooding her cheeks. She looked anywhere but at Sora, who had pulled away at breakneck pace as well.

"Wha?" Axel asked, opening his eyes to see two very red-faced teens sitting on opposite sides of a bed, looking anywhere but at him or each other. A sly grin crossed his face, but he said nothing, thankfully. Still smirking, he walked into the cockpit to talk to Lifelle and Riku. Kairi would have been able to hear him, were it not for the blood roaring in her ears. Sora was the first to speak.

"I'm kinda tired... G'night," he said loudly, getting up quickly and fast-walking back to the sofa he had previously been slumbering in, never once looking a Kairi. She mumbled an unintelligeable "Goodnight" and laid back down, rolling over into a scrunched-up position, facing the window. Stars flitted in front of her eyes. A comforting silence rested in the room. Neither Sora nor Kairi made a single sound, save for the occaisonal creak in bed (or couch) springs when one of them would move an inch or two, each lost in their own thoughts.

It took about half an hour for Kairi's heart to stop trying to leap out of her chest. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she paid no attention to a snickering Axel, who went back to the other room to sleep on a sleeping bag the keybladers had found for him in the storage compartment of the gummi ship the day before.

Kairi knew she wasn't going to get to sleep tonight. And she didn't want to.

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Damn that Axel, ruining the moment like that!

xD

Hope you guys liked the fluffiness. And hope you don't mind the corniness of afforementioned fluffiness :) I just always wanted to write a scene like this. Plus, I thought this story was SERIOUSLY lacking in fluff, so I decided to make it all sappy and romantic for ya.

Please review! If you liked the SoraxKairi fluff, tell me to put more in and I promise I will!

LV-chan.


	11. The Morning After

Phew! I'm glad I finished this chapter in time. I'm going on vacation tomorrow and I wanted to make sure I got another chapter in before I left. Hope you like the next installment of my crap-tastic story!

Disclaimer: If I did, there'd be a National Axel Day.

**11. The Morning After.**

Kairi awoke the next morning feeling jumpier than she'd ever felt before. Part of the reason was because of what had happened the night before, and part of the reason was that she had realized and come to terms with the fact that she was completely and utterly head-over-heels in love with Sora. She had known it for a while, but refused to acknowledge it or accept it until last night, when she understood far her predicament had gotten.

She was the first person up, aside from Riku, who was driving the gummi ship dutifully, never taking his eyes off the sky. She heard him yawn loudly from the cockpit. Looking over at Sora, she wasn't surprised to feel her heartbeat pick up significantly just from thinking of what almost happened the night before. (Or was it morning?) Kairi smiled to herself as she watched Sora's hair flutter every time he exhaled. Not wanting to be a freaky stalker/creeper, she rose and walked through the room where Lifelle, Darran, and Axel were sleeping. The latter was stretched out on a sleeping bag, snoring quietly as he slumbered. Kairi hoped that he would have enough sense to not mention what he had witnessed.

Kairi took her time getting changed. She found herself thinking things like "_I wonder if Sora would like this_," and "_Does Sora like green? I forget..._" She chided herself for acting so teenage-girlish a moment before she remembered she _was_ a teenage girl. She laughed quietly to herself.

One thing had been bothering Kairi all night. What if Sora _hadn't_ been leaning in to kiss her? What if there was simply an eyelash on her face, and he was leaning in to get it? Kairi felt herself spiraling downward into misery and self-conciousness.

_You're an idiot,_ Namine clarified bluntly. Kairi raised an eyebrow at her reflection in the mirror, just before realizing Namine was completely and totally one-hundered-percent correct.

_You're right... there's no way Sora could ever like me like that, _she agreed. She felt Namine mentally slap her.

_That's not what I meant! I mean you're an idiot because there's no way Sora could _not_ like you like that. He tried to kiss you last night, didn't he?_

_Ah, but what if that wasn't what that was at all? What if I had something on my face and he was just trying to get it off?_

_Oh, and I suppose he needed to be three centimeters from your face to see it?_

_It _was_ dark in there last night,_ Kairi reminded her Nobody with a tinge of depressed smugness. Namine was just about to retaliate when a light knocking could be heard from the door.

"Kairi? You in there? I know this is really rude and everything, but you've been in that bathroom for like half an hour, changing, and I really hafta... well, you know..." Lifelle murmered from behind the door.

"Oh! Sorry, I was just thinking to myself. I'll be out of here in a sec," She promised, gathering her pajamas and bag. Kairi opened the door to see a relieved-looking Lifelle. She gave her an apologetic smile and shuffled out of the way.

Kairi had taken a lot of thought into what she was going to wear today. She ended up choosing a pair of loose, swishy black capris and a tight-fitting black-and-white diagonally-striped short-sleeved shirt, coupled with simple black flip-flops.

_What's with the monochrome?_ Namine asked.

_I remember Sora saying one time that I looked nice in this shirt last year... and these pants go well with it, I think_, she explained. She could feel Namine rolling her eyes.

"Morning," Axel greeted her, stretching as he sat up. He had obviously just awoken, yet his vivid red spikes stayed as orderly as ever. A smirk played on his lips and his pretty green eyes sparkled with mischief above his upside-down black triangle tattoos.

"Good morning..." Kairi replied uneasily. She could tell that Axel was enjoying making her nervous to no end.

"Look, Axel, could you just do us both a favor and not mention-" Kairi started, her whispers rushed and low in the hope that she wouldn't wake up Darran, who was still asleep in his bed.

"Don't worry, I'm not that big of a jackass," the formor Nobody assured her. Kairi breathed out a sigh of relief, realizing that the sparkle in Axel's eyes was just a permanent part of his character.

"Thank you," she sighed, bowing her head a bit. Axel just laughed, which unfortunately woke Darran up. He opened his dark, chocolate-brown eyes blearily and yawned, pulling a pillow over his head.

"One more hour..." he mumbled, his voice muffled by the pillow. Lifelle, who came out of the bathroom in time to hear him say this, stole the pillow from him. He only glared at her and rolled over, huffing loudly.

"Lazy, no-good brother of mine..." She mumbled, throwing the pillow at his head.

"Ow!" He grunted, still not rolling over, but tucking the pillow under his head in one fluid movement. Lifelle rolled her eyes in disapproval, sweeping some of her raven-colored hair out of her face.

The four of them sat (well, in Darran's case, slept) in peace for about a minute, each in their own early-morning thoughts, when a loud yawn jerked them to life. Sora stumbled into the room, rubbing his eyes lazily.

"Morning, all," he muttered, his greeting muffled by a yawn.

"Morning," Axel and Lifelle said in unison. Sora opened his eyes. They darted to Kairi, who had been beet red since he walked into the room. Sora flushed at a startling speed and fast-walked to the bathroom without another word. Kairi decided she needed to get out of the room. Fast. Before Sora came out of the bathroom.

"I'm gonna go see if Riku wants me to drive," she told Axel and Lifelle, perhaps a touch louder than she had to. She couldn't stop her eyes from landing on the bathroom door just once.

Ignoring Axel's smirk and Lifelle's questioning look, Kairi got up from the chair she was sitting in and sat next to Riku in the cockpit. The silver-hairied keyblader looked a little worse-for-the-wear. He yawned widely and shook his head a little before noticing Kairi.

"Oh! Hey, you're up," He said in surprise.

"Yep. What, surprised to see me outta bed before noon?" She asked her friend, who nodded sheepishly. She punched him lightly on the arm before speaking, ignoring the indignant "ow!" of pain.

"You look like you could use some sleep," Kairi said, smirking as Riku massaged his arm.

"And and ice pack," He added sternly. Kairi only laughed.

"Anyway, I was thinking I would take over for you," she answered. Riku's eyes widened in alarm.

"Do you even know how to drive this?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. Sora showed me how before we left the islands," Kairi nodded, reminiscing for a split second. She remembered how Sora had guided her through the various buttons and controls, smiling and laughing the entire time.

"Alright, that works for me," Riku agreed. He got up without another word, seemingly much more tired than he let on. Kairi shifted a seat over and immediately took control of the would-be steering wheel. It was actually only two connected poles that looked like joysticks. Buttons of various sizes and colors as well as a variety of levers layered the dashboard.

"Okay, I can do this," Kairi told herself. After all, it was her first time flying.

Everything went smoothly for about half an hour. Kairi diligently kept her eyes on the sky, speeding past small asteroids and shooting the lasers once or twice just to see the beam of blue light fly into the black, lost to her sight in a fraction of a second. She could see a large dot strait ahead of her, which she presumed was Land of the Dragons. It slowly, slowly, slowly got larger. Kairi could tell it would take at least another three hours to get there.

She found herself drifting into her thoughts, though she tried not to. The more she thought about it, the more she was sure that Sora didn't _like_ her, like her, at least not in the same way she liked him. Even Namine's constant assurals that she was wrong, and insane for even thinking it for that matter, didn't convince Kairi. Something stopped Kairi's internal argument, however.

A fleet of indescructible-looking heartless ships were bounding towards the gummi ship, painted completely black and sporting massive emblems. Kairi sat up in her seat, forgetting her self-doubt and pity for the moment, feeling the adrenaline course through her veins like a little electric current. She pounded on the lasers, and later the cannons when they didn't do the trick. As if she had made the ships angry, the fleet let loose a breathtaking blast of lasers, lighting up space for a millisecond. The lasers rocked the gummi ship dangerously, and Kairi felt her heart start pounding as a shrill buzzing sounded in her mind.

"Ummm... guys," she called nervously as the ship was assualted once more. Darran, Lifelle, Riku, Axel, and Sora formed as ring around her as watched in horror as the ships sped towards them.

"I think we may have a problem."

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Sorry if i wasn't very long 

But! I made it emo-tastic! And Axel-tastic! And angsty-tastic! So there! P

I probably won't be able to post for another week or so, sorry about that.

REVIEW! Review like the wind! And if you want less emo/more emo/less fluff/more fluff, TELL ME and I'll fix it! And I promise to reply back to any and all reviews I get! Thank you and goodnight xD

LV-chan.


	12. Crash

Hey guys! Sorry for leaving you with a cliffhanger right before going on vacation... that wasn't very nice xD

But I'm back now! And I have a brand-shiny-new chapter for you!

Disclaimer: No.

**12. Crash.**

Sora swore under his breath.

"What are heartless ships of this level doing at the cross between the Coliseum and Land of the Dragons?" Riku asked no one in particular.

_Bam._

The heartless ships rammed into the gummi ship, causing the entire structure to shake violently. Kairi was thrown out of the seat and Axel took her place as pilot.

"Let's see if this is anything like the old Organization ships..." he mused, his bright green eyes roaming over the various buttons.

_Bam._

"Hmm... nothing like the old ships after all," Axel murmered after a swift consideration. He scratched his head and shrugged, half a smile on his face.

"When in doubt..." he said, raising his hands, "Push 'em all!"

"No!" Riku warned as Axel's hands collided with every single button on the dashboard. An earsplitting alarm sounded and a red light started flashing obnoxiously.

_Bam._

"You idiot, there's a self-destruct button!" Riku yelled, falling to the ground due to the fact that the shrill shrieking of the alarm seemed only to anger the heartless ships more. It reminded Kairi of the time when she had knocked a bees' nest to the ground when she was five, unaware that the little structure was full of the enraged insects.

_Bam._

_Bam._

_BAM!_

With a shudder of defeat, the roaring engine of the gummi ship suddenly stopped. The ship started falling, picking up speed with every second. Everyone aboard started screaming. Riku's arms locked reflexively around Lifelle as he shifted slighty, using his back as a shield when the windshield broke. Axel and Darran were roughly pushed against the shotgun chair, their heads knocking together with a loud _thunk._

"OW!" They shouted in unison. It occured to Kairi that it would have been very funny, were it not for the drop of blood winding it's way down Darran's right cheek.

Kairi was flung under the dashboard, unable to get up. Sora was next to her in an instant, whispering in her ear, though she couldn't quite make out of words. Putting her hand on the back of her head, she felt the telltale dampness and was unsurprised when her fingers came back dark and bloody.

Suddenly, as if time had going into slow motion, Sora had wrapped his arms around her, forming an iron embrace. Sora's face was the last thing Kairi saw before the darkness converged on her, obliterating all her senses.

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Something extremely cold was pressing against her forehead with the lightest of pressures. Kairi opened her eyes to see Darran crouched next to her, his hand on her forehead.

"Where... are we?" She asked with difficulty, taking in the sight before her. She was sitting in a corner, thick walls in front of her to her left and right. Stars shimmered above her and Darran. She watched, open-mouthed as she thought she saw one of them flicker and die.

"Traverse Town, third district," Darran murmered, taking her wrist to check her pulse.

"Traverse Town? And what are you doing?" She asked, watching Darran curiously. He put his hand on her head again, smoothing back some of her hair.

"You're burning up," he clarified.

"No, your hands are just really cold," Kairi muttered, smiling a little, despite the loud and rythmic pounding that originated somewhere in the back of her head. Darran smiled suddenly, the first time Kairi had seen him do so. She realized that he actually looked quite...well, hot, there was no other way to describe it, when he smiled.

"You look nice when you smile," Kairi blurted out, determined not to lose conciousness again as the pounding got louder. Darran laughed.

"Thanks. Now turn your head so I can take a look at that wound. You fell pretty hard."

Kairi obliged, moving as fast as she could without triggering too much pain. She felt Darran's cool hands on the back of her skull. She gasped in pain when his fingers grazed the cut on the back of her head.

"Sorry... here, I'll be able to fix this," Darran assured her. She heard him summon his keyblade.

"Cura," he murmered. Little four-leaf clovers danced above her head for a split second, forming an emerald halo. They vanished as the pounding stopped abruptly. All traces of pain were gone.

"Wow... thanks," she breathed, her thought process much clearer. Darran grinned once again as his keyblade disappeared in a flash of light.

"No problem. I fell just a second after you and cured myself. Then I saw you slumped over here and wanted to make sure you weren't too badly hurt," he explained.

"Thanks," Kairi repeated, "and why are we in Traverse Town? Sora didn't come anywhere near here last time he left," she asked, unableto keep the puzzlement from creeping into her voice.

"That's because it's in a whole other star system now," Darran clarified. Kairi waited for the shock to seep through before letting it show on her face.

"A different _system?_ What worlds are in this system?" She asked in disbelief.

"New ones, born from darkness from the last times. When the heartless left them, people who inhabited Traverse Town last time Sora left went to them in their own gummi ships. I don't believe Sora, Riku, or anyone we know for that matter, has been to them," Darran explained.

"Wait... how do you know all this?" Kairi asked, her eyes opening wide.

"Merlin taught my sister and I all we know about these worlds. He had been doing research to find out what had happened to people in worlds Sora went to the first time he left, but not the second time. When he discovered Traverse Town was in a completely different system, he checked out every world there."

"Oh. Well where-"

Kairi was interrrupted by a loud groaning, coming from a familiar voice. She turned to see Axel stumbling towards them, holding his head with a martyred expression.

"Can one of you two help me?" He asked, his eyes squeezed shut in pain. Darran went over to him and looked at his head briefly.

"You wimp, it's only a cut. Don't you know any Cure magic?" He asked, disapproval coloring his tone.

"My specialty is fire, jackass. Can't you just heal me and get it over with?" Axel asked, a laugh hidden in his voice. Despite the insult, Darran raised his keyblade without another word. Little clovers erupted around Axel's fiery red hair, dancing above his head in a ring.

"Thanks," he said when the little clovers disappeared. Darran nodded and his keyblade vanished in a flash of white.

"Have you seen any of the others?" Kairi asked politely. Axel raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"Yeah. Lifelle and Riku are in the hotel in the second district. They both got knocked around pretty bad," he explained. Axel couldn't quite keep the smirk off his face.

"Oh..." Kairi murmered, her heart plummeting in her chest.

_What about Sora?_ She wondered. Almost as if he heard her thoughts (or read it on her face), Axel's grin became more pronounced as he said, "Oh, don't worry. Sora's there too. He cured himself, but the nurses still made him stay there. Apparantly our friend was in a bit of a tizzy."

"A tizzy?" Kairi repeated.

Axel nodded. "He kept trying to leave, even after the nurses told him it would be better to stay with Riku and Lifelle. Eventually Riku knocked him out for arguing so much. He kept saying he wanted to go find someone," Axel clarified slyly.

_I wonder who that could be..._ Namine asked sarcastically.

_Do you _ever_ shut up?!_ Kairi asked her Nobody, in no mood to argue with her.

"Let's go see them," Darran suggested. Kairi nodded and she, Axel, and Darran made their way to the hotel.

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Hope you guys liked it! And by the way, I'm not posting chapter 13 until I get at least 10 more reviews. It doesn't exactly help my self-confidence as a writer to come back from a four-day vacation and see that I've only gotten on review. And nothing pisses a writer off more than seing she has 700+ hits and only 23 reviews. There's something wrong with that. So review! Or no more chapters for you!

Vampire love.


	13. Lacrymosa

OMG I'M SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG!!!

For some reason wouldn't load this chapter until just now... It sucked. But now it's better! Yay!

And I expect reviews!

Disclaimer: No.

And I only called this chapter "Lacrymosa" because I may or may not have been listening to that song and it's kid of a fitting chapter title, if you ask me. And if you don't like it, you can just bite me.

**13. Lacrymosa.**

Kairi, Darran, and Axel made their way through the Third District with minimal interference from the heartless. Kairi gasped as they passed the Small House; she remembered staying there after Sora brought her back from Hollow Bastion.

"What, you've been here before?" Darran asked, noticing the look on Kairi's face. She nodded, looking in the windows of the little haven.

"Yeah, when Sora rescued me the first time," she said softly. Darran sighed. Kairi looked at him questioningly, due to the fact that he suddenly looked extremely sad.

"What?" She asked, trying to see his face. He shook his head.

"It's nothing," he muttered, pushing the door open to get into the second district. Kairi shrugged it off and called her keyblade as three shadows and two soldiers arose from small spheres of darkness. She struck one of the soldiers, would-be decapitating it, only to see it disappear in a puff of smoke. A little pink heart fluttered up to the sky. Darran took care of three shadows with one swing, and Axel was merrily burning the remaining soldier. He was whistling as it writhed in pain from the flames surrounding it. Eventually it disappeared as well, and Axel looked disappointed.

"Aww! They always die so quickly... how's a person supposed to have fun?" He asked, his eyes twinkling.

Kairi rolled her eyes. "Has anyone ever told you you're an insane pyromaniac?"

"I might've heard that before..." he grinned.

They walked through the second district, stopping occasionally for Axel to happily incinerate some heartless, until they got to the hotel. The walked to the newly installed desk, where a kind-looking receptionist was reading something off a clipboard.

"Hi, can we see Sora, Riku, and Lifelle?" Kairi asked politely. The nurse looked up with a motherly smile.

"Your names?" She asked.

"Kairi, Darran, and Axel," Kairi replied, gesturing to each in turn.

"Oh! Kairi! Of course, Sora was... talking... about you earlier," the nurse answered, showing them to a room with the words "Green Room" on it. They went in and saw Sora pacing across the length of the room, obviously worried about something. Lifelle and Riku sat on either ends of the bed, facing each other.

"Kairi!" Sora said, looking up at her. She smiled.

"What happened to your head? Are you okay?" He asked, walking to the back of her to examine where there had been a large, bloody wound half an hour ago.

"It's okay, Darran healed me. And then we saw Axel, who had quite a war wound," Kairi laughed. Axel stuck out his tongue at her.

"Darran?" Sora repeated. He narrowed his eyes and looked at the keyblader, who had the same sad look on his face.

"Yeah," Kairi replied, not quite knowing what was going on.

_Why does he look so suspicious?_ She asked, almost wishing for Namine to explain things. _He's jealous, moron,_ Namine answered.

_Jealous? Of what? _If_ he liked me like I like him, there's still nothing for him to be jealous of. I don't like Darran like that. And I don't think he likes me like that, either._

_But Sora doesn't know that,_ Namine pointed out.

"Where did you guys crash?" Darran asked his sister and Riku.

"First district, next to the accessory shop," Riku answered. Lifelle nodded.

"Sora? Where did you land?" Kairi asked.

"In the alleyway in the second district, in the water," Sora replied.

Just then, a nurse walked in, smiling.

"You guys are free to go," she said. She left without another word.

"Yes!" Sora said, punching the air. He seemed to have recovered his cheerfulness. The keybladers - and Axel - left the hotel then, the latter yawning.

"Well, seeing as our gummi ship is nowhere to be found, what do you guys want to do while the nearby mechanic is making one for us? I already spoke to him for us," Axel asked.

"I'd love to have a look around," Lifelle said, her wide chocolate-brown eyes roaming the second district.

"I think that's a good idea," Riku added. Sora nodded and looked around the little circle of people. Darran, Axel, and Kairi nodded.

"Lifelle, you want to walk with me?" Riku asked. She smiled and nodded, the two starting towards the first district.

"I think I'll look more around the third district," Darran said, an angry undertone to his voice. Kairi failed to notice Sora mouthing "Go with him," frantically to Axel.

"I'll go with. You know, buddy system and all that," Axel said, twirling his chakrams around. A sulky look from Darran, and the two were off.

"Looks like it's just us," Kairi said, a bit breathless. Sora smiled.

"Come on! I want to show you something," he said. Kairi nodded.

They walked for about half a second until Sora got a mischevious grin on his face. He turned around to face Kairi a split second before saying "Race you!" and speeding off towards the stair leading to the ground level of the second district.

Kairi smiled and ran as fast as she could after him. It didn't take long for her to catch up with him. He turned around and saw how close she was. Instead of the look of alarm she was expecting, an impish grin took over his features. The next thing she knew, Sora was ten feet in front of her, still running.

"How... did you do that?" She asked between breaths as she struggled to catch up to him once more.

"Quick Run!" He called over his shoulder. Kairi rolled her eyes and just ran faster; Quick Run or no Quick Run, she was going to beat him. She raced towards him for about another minute before he ran out of breath. He leaned over, his hands on his knees, panting. Kairi realized they were in front of the Gizmo Shop, close to the hotel.

_Wierd... we should have gained more ground than that. We were running for a while..._ Kairi thought to herself, looking at the 15 feet that covered the ground between the Hotel and the Gizmo Shop.

_You circled the second district, you dolt,_ Namine interrupted, _But you were too busy watching Sora to notice._

_Ah._

"You okay?" She asked Sora, who was still breathless.

"Yeah... Quick Run just takes it out of you sometimes. Ready to go?" He replied, gesturing for her to lead the way. Kairi nodded and walked into the Gizmo Shop, where numerous shadows and soldiers harassed them for what seemed like and eternity. The two friends finished them off with ease.

"We done in here?" Kairi asked, stowing her keyblade for a moment.

"Yeah, seems like they're gone. By the way, I realized that your keyblade doesn't have a name. Don't you have one in mind?" Sora asked.

Kairi blushed. She had, in fact, come up with a name, but it was so... corny. And there was no way she was going to own up to that.

"Um... Nope, haven't thought of one! I guess I'll just have to keep thinking," she laughed, flashing the non-cheesiest smile she could manage. Sora didn't look convinced, but he shrugged good-naturedly and let it drop.

The keybladers were on the other side of the Gizmo Shop after a last look to make sure no more heartless would reappear.

"Um... Sora, why are we here?" Kairi asked, looking around the cramped, narrow alley.

"I want to show you something," he answered, climbing up a ladder Kairi had never noticed before. She climbed it after him, happy to be up on steady ground when she got to the top. Nothing worse than a wobbly ladder.

"Sit next to me," Sora said as he sat down on a ledge to the left of Kairi. She complied and gasped at the sight before her; the second district of Twilight Town, laid before her eyes under a clear night sky. Seeing the look on Kairi's face, Sora smiled and raised his Olympia-chained keyblade, shooting a blue beam of light into the mural that was below the ledge to the first district. A dozen little fountains erupted from the smooth, clear water and the butterflies in the mural sprang to light, each a small, bright blue dot from the distance.

"How... did you do that?" Kairi asked.

"A little trick I learned from Merlin," Sora laughed softly, "That mural actually hold the keyhole for Twilight Town. After I locked it, Merlin taught me a way to manipulate the light and energy around it."

"Wow... It's so beautiful," Kairi sighed.

Kairi sat there, not daring to breathe. She felt so lightheaded, yet so happy. A small sigh escaped from her. After a while, the little voice in the back of her head (namely Namine) reminded her that now would be a perfect time to get some sort of explanation for the incident that had woken her up after so many years of uncertainty.

"Um... Sora?" She asked, tearing her eyes from the sight before her.

"...Mmm?" He asked; it sounded like she had broken a previous trail of thought of his.

"Remember... th-the other night?" The words were harder to make now; Kairi gulped and felt her breathing become more shallow. She cringed internally.

"Yeah," Sora answered, turning to face her. Nothing showed on his face but polite puzzlement. Kairi's heart plummeted in her chest. She could feel herself spiraling towards misery, drowning in it.

"What... happened?" She asked. Her words sounded hollow, even to her.

"There was an eyelash on your face. I wanted to get it," Sora replied simply. Kairi fought back tears and stood up before her face completely betrayed the internal damage he had caused with that simple, blunt explanation.

"Where are you going?" Sora asked, looking at her concernedly.

"I-I have to go... I don't feel well," Kairi stammered, unable to stop the tears now. One crystalline, glistening droplet landed at the ground at her feet. She climbed down the stairs quickly, biting her lip to hamper the big baby sob that threatened to make itself heard.

"Is there anything I can do?" Sora called, looking down at her. She shook her head and kept running, pushing into the Gizmo Shop. Thankfully, no heartless came as she blundered teary-eyed through the building, eventually getting out to the other side. She didn't bother looking back to see if Sora was following her; just his bewildered face in her mind made her sob harder. The lump in her throat made it difficult to breathe.

"Room... for one, p-please," Kairi said to the kind, motherly-looking receptionist from earlier. She gave Kairi a comforting look, then handed her a key.

"Green Room... it'll be okay," she called, watching the redhead stumble into the room.

As soon as the door was closed, Kairi put her back to it and slid down the wall, tears streaming down her face faster than ever.

_It's okay..._ Namine kept saying over and over again in her mind. Kairi just shook her head, sniffling like mad as she wept.

_It's not._

She didn't know how long she sat there, crying like the world had just ended. But it had.

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Angst-fest! And before you guys kill me for being so emo, I do have a plan! The next chapter will be in Sora's point of view.

Vampire love!


	14. Sora

TT I KNOW! I'm sorry! My mom got my report card in the mail a few days back, and she wasn't exactly impressed with the big fat F after Advanced Geometry, so... I won't be able to update as often. AND I'm not going to be able to go on this really big trip to Florida I was supposed to go on later this week... and to top it all off, I'm grounded. Way to go, self.

Anyways, here's my newest emo-tastic chapter... Enjoy.

Disclaimer: If I did, the amount of angst would be offending.

**14. Sora**

_I'm... sorry... Kairi..._

So Sora thought as he sat at the top of the Gizmo Shop, looking down at his too-still feet. Tonight was the night he had dreaming of ever since he realized he loved Kairi... and he had been unable ot accomplish anything but make the girl of his dreams cry.

"It's not as if I want this!" Sora cried out in frustration, punching the ground with his fists. He wished he could go to her, explain, but the only rationally thinking part of his brain held him back.

_You know you can't do that..._ Roxas said to him sadly. Sora ground his teeth together to stop the tears from falling. He was unsuccessful.

_But... it's _Kairi, he whimpered to his Nobody, trying to deny the logic in Roxas' reasoning.

_You what'll happen in you do,_ Roxas told him for the thousandth time, _and do you really want that?_

When Sora didn't respond, Roxas continued with his persuasion. _We both know you have enemies. The Keyblade Master will _always_ have enemies. And you know what they'd do to Kairi if they ever found out she was anything more than a friend to you._

_But then we'd hide it, _Sora argued, _so that nobody would ever find out._

_Could you really stop that feeling you get everytime you look at her from showing on your face if you two were together?_

Sora shook his head sadly after a moment. What Roxas said was true. He wouldn't be able to stop himself. And there was no way he was going to risk Kairi's life, ever, for anything. Not even his feelings.

_So we can never be...? _Sora asked his Nobody, though he knew the answer. Roxas didn't reply. After a long look at the butterflies and fountain he had created for Kairi only half an hour ago, Sora slowly stood up.

"Thought I'd find you here," A voice said from behind him. Sora looked to see Riku, whose face was falling at the degree of depression that seemed to resonate around Sora, manifesting itself in every feature of his face.

"What happened?" Riku asked, though he had a pretty good idea of what had transpired.

"Kairi..." Sora whispered, closing his eyes. He couldn't get the image of her tearstreaked face out of his mind.

"What happened?" Riku echoed, sitting down where Kairi had been moments ago.

Sora sighed, then recounted his tale, not a single excruciatingly painful detail forgotten.

"...And there's no way I'm ever risking her, for anything," Sora finished. Riku shook his head.

"That sucks, man. I can't even imagine what you're going through... to love someone that much, be unable to even tell her how you feel..." He muttered. A certain dark-haired person intruded on his thoughts for a moment.

"'Sucks' doesn't even _begin_ to cover it..." Sora said mournfully, not even trying to keep the anguish out of his voice.Riku nodded in agreement.

"Come on, let's get you out of here. You need sleep," Riku said, helping Sora up. He had noticed that dark circles that shadowed Sora's eyes, making him appear more grim and haunted than ever before.

"Sure," he said, his eyes focusing on nothing in particular. He walked lifelessly through the Gizmo Shop along with Riku.

"Hey, why didn't you just fly down?" Riku asked, shooting Sora a quizzical look. Sora seemed to consider whether or not to answer. A flat, dead look crept into his eyes before he spoke.

"I can't," he replied tonelessly. Riku nodded, his hunch correct.

"Room for one, please," he told the receptionist. She nodded and handed him a key.

"Blue room, down the hall," she said, shooting a worried glance at the green door diagonal from her.

"Room for one," Sora murmered apathetically.

"Oh, Sora... Red Room for you. It's adjoining with the Green Room," the matronly woman explained, "and your friend Kairi is in there. Is that okay?"

Sora's eyes welled reflexively at the sound of Kairi's name.

"No, any other room, please," he said weakly. The lady hid her concern poorly and handed him a small key.

"Okay... Purple Room then, it's right next to the Blue Room. Get some sleep," she advised. Sora nodded inattentively and walked to his room. Opening the door, he kicked his shoes off and curled up into a ball on the bed, not bothering to change out of his clothes. Kairi's face, glistening with fresh tears, was the last thing he saw before sleep envoloped his thoughts completely.

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Angsty enough for ya?

By the way, read and review The Darkness of his Heart by Brightshadow 5. It's really good. xD

This was the only chapter I planned to write in Sora's point of view, but if you want more, than review! (Actually, just review regardless.)

Vampire love!


	15. Revenge

Hey guys! I probably won't be able to update at all for about two weeks after this, so without further adeiu, here's chapter 15.

Disclaimer: If I did, I sure as hell wouldn't have to put up with this whole grounding thing...

**15. Revenge.**

Kairi awoke quickly, after being plagued by swift nightmares, one flitting from her mind just in time for another. Her head pounding, she realized she was still curled up in the same miserable ball she was in the night before.

"Ow..." She wimpered, stretching her legs. Pain shot up them both, after having been stiff all night.

_Feeling any better?_ Namine asked comfortingly. Kairi thought about that question incredulously. Could Namine not feel the pain stabbing her heart like a lancet with each beat?

_I've always thought "heartache" was a figure of speech..._ She answered, putting her hand to her head.

_I feel like I've got a hangover..._ Kairi moaned internally, not wanting to break the silence with her voice, which was undoubtedly harsh from sobbing all night.

_I'm sorry... _Namine apologized. _But, now for the big question. What are you going to do when you see Sora today?_

Kairi responded instantly. _I'm going to pretend like nothing happened. I've just got to get over it. True, it'll hurt infinitely in the beginning, but nothing lasts forever, right? I may not be able to cease my feelings, but I'll ignore them as best I can._

_Do you really think that's healthy?_ Namine asked disapprovingly.

_None of this is healthy,_ Kairi retorted. Namine agreed grimly. Kairi changed clothes and brushed her hair and teeth quickly. She took extra time to wash her tearstained face, wanting to erase all the evidence of her sorrow. Checking her appearance in the mirror to make sure she looked as natural as she could, Kairi was faintly alarmed, yet unsurprised, at the nonemotional, dead look in her eyes.

_If anyone asks, I'll say I don't know what they're talking about,_ she decided. With a solemn sigh, Kairi carefully arranged her features into the most convincing smile she could, then walked out the door.

Axel was standing in the hallway, talking animatedly to a new, pretty receptionist at the desk by the door. Kairi was unsurprised; she had always pictured him as a flirty type.

"Morning, Kairi," Axel greeted her, not taking his eyes off the receptionist. She replied with the most natural-sounding "Morning" as she could, yet something in her voice seemed to break through Axel's preoccupation with the girl in front of him. He whipped his head around in alarm, looking at her face. His charming smile fell.

"What's wrong?" He asked, peering into her eyes.

"Nothing," she said, feigning brightness. Axel didn't appear convinced, but the sound of a door slamming shut temporarily halted his interrogation. Lifelle joined them quickly, wearing a pair of dark jeans and a white spaghetti-strapped tank.

"Morning," she said politely.

"Morning," Axel replied.

"Good morning," Kairi responded with as much enthusiasm as she could muster. Lifelle, too, was not convinced. Kairi hoped she had enough womanly intuition to know that now was really not a great time to talk about it.

"Riku not up yet?" Lifelle asked casually, her eyes widening in concern for only a moment. Kairi breathed an internal sigh of relief.

"Actually, he's just outside. Actually, he told me to tell him when you got up... Oops," Axel grinned shiftily. Lifelle smiled and walked out the large double-doors that Kairi knew lead to the Alleyway.

"Well, I guess that's everybody," Axel said, raising an eyebrow at Kairi. She tried her best to hide her surprise quickly.

"Where's Sora?" She asked. Kairi didn't anticipate how hard it was to say his name; it came out barely a whisper.

"He's in the Third District, where Merlin used to train him for magic. Said something about needing 'alone time.' Told me to send Riku over when we were all up and ready to leave," Axel explained slowly, as if waiting for some emotion or small gasp from Kairi. She merely nodded, then looked away, trying to appear fascinated with the pale mint-green wallpaper.

"Any idea what he needed alone time for?" Axel finally asked, his bright green eyes probing her face.

"No."

Axel seemed to consider this for a moment. Finally, he sighed.

"Look, I don't know what went on between you two last night, but I just wanna let you know that I'm here for you, okay?" Axel said, putting his hand on Kairi's shoulder. She looked up in surprise.

"You're like a little sister to me, and I don't like to see you like this," Axel said, giving a small smile, which Kairi returned in earnest.

"Thanks, Axel. I'll tell you sometime... Just, not now. Okay?" She asked. Axel grinned and nodded, seeming happy to help.

Axel and Kairi met Lifelle and Riku in the Alleyway, where they were talking freely. Lifelle laughed a lot; Kairi was surprised, Riku never came across to her as the funny type.

"Wait, where's Darran?" Kairi asked once everyone was walking towards the first district, to the gummi ship.

"My _dear brother..._" Lifelle started scathingly, "Is training in the Third District."

Kairi didn't quite know why Lifelle was so obviously disgusted with Darran, but she put it out of her mind quickly; after all, it was none of her business. They reached the gummi ship, which was waiting outside the world gate, with an almost gleeful Darran waving at them. Kairi's breath caught as she saw Sora's silhouette in one of the gummi ship's windows.

"Hey, guys! Great day, huh?" Darran greeted them enthusiastically, smiling the broadest smile Kairi had ever seen. Unwillingly, the thought _He's pretty good-looking when he smiles..._ ran through her mind.

_Hey, here's an idea - you're going to actually go through with this getting-over-Sora plan, right?_ Namine said hopefully, no doubt hearing Kairi's previous thought.

_Yeah... what's your idea?_ Kairi asked; even now, it was hurting less and less to hear Sora's name...

_Well, to be quite frank, Darran's interested in you. Why not ask him out?_ Namine suggested bluntly. Kairi was shocked at her Nobody.

_I can't do that! I'm not going to use someone as a meaningless rebound just so I can get over this faster,_ Kairi argued.

_Why not? He's hot, nice, and how do you know this won't be more than a rebound...?_ Namine asked slyly. Kairi looked once more at Sora's spiky-haired silhouette with sudden defiance.

_...You know what? You're right. _Nobody_ makes me feel like shit. I'll get over this, and I'll do it however I please._

Kairi could feel Namine's shock at the absolute venom saturing Kairi's voice.

_Um...? You okay, hun?_ Namine asked shakily.

_Just perfect._

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Ooooooooouuuuu! Kairi's pissed! (Wouldn't you be? xD)

Review!

Review!

Review!

Vampire love.


	16. Guilt Trip

Hey! Just so you guys know, I'm going to Disneyworld on a band trip until late Monday night ,so I won't be able to update at all this weekend. Sorry! (Well, not really... Come on, it's _Disneyworld_.)

Also, a friend of mine (x.b.o.o.x) told me that she thought she could write emo better than me. PM her and complain about this outrageous accusation! Because we all know LV-chan is the Angst Queen xD

Disclaimer: If I did, this chapter would so happen.

**16. Guilt Trip.**

Kairi walked over to where Darran was leaning against the gummi ship.

"Good morning, Darran," Kairi said sweetly. Darran's grin became more pronounced as he answered.

"Morning, Kairi. How did you sleep?"

_Like shit._

"Good, good... You?"

"Pretty good. I trained for a little with Axel last night, then went to bed at like midnight. What about you? Did you get enough sleep? You look kinda tired..." Darran noticed, obviously concerned.

_Aww! _Namine squealed.

"Oh, that's just because I'm used to getting 14 hours of sleep a night," Kairi explained, giggling fakely.

_Laying it on a bit thick, aren't you?_ Namine commented dryly. Kairi smirked, seeing Sora's silhouette turn towards her reflexively. He was listening in; that was obvious.

_This'll be interesting..._ Kairi thought maliciously. Her conversation with Sora the night before was racing through her mind for the thousandth time in half a day.

"So... I saw you in the Coliseum; you're a great fighter!" She flirted.

_Oh my god... you have no shame. You do realize that, right?_ Namine criticized, rolling her eyes.

"Thanks. You weren't too bad yourself," Darran said, scratching the back of his head.

_I was better than you, that's for damn sure._

"Oh, you were so much better than me!" Kairi said, a high-pitched girlish giggle creeping into her voice.

"Naah, we were even," Darran said, obviously enjoying the attention. A part of Kairi really did disapprove of her using Darran like this, but one look at Sora's shadow was enough to silence that annoying little goody-goody voice.

"So... you wanna go out sometime?" Kairi asked, taking a step closer to Darran. She batted her eyelashes seductively. Out of her peripheral vision, Kairi saw Riku staring at her incredulously.

"Wow! Sure!" Darran replied, surprise and happiness on his face.

_Poor guy, he's clearly been wanting this to happen for a long time..._ Namine murmered sadly.

"Great! We oughta head into the gummi ship," Kairi said, watching as Sora's silhouette got up from the seat he was in suddenly and walk to the back of the ship. She heard the bathroom door slam violently.

Kairi and Darran followed an obviously confused Riku into the aircraft, the latter having taken out his keyblade and twirling it around, carefree and smiling. Kairi smirked when she saw the bathroom door was closed; that meant Sora was guilty.

_Good. There's nothing worse than being on a guilt trip._

_A guilt trip that you put on him! I thought you loved Sora!_ Namine burst out inside Kairi's head, her voice going up about three octaves. Kairi winced - One more octave, and Namine's voice would reach dog-whistle status.

_I do!_ Kairi lashed out. _I really do..._

_I'm sorry..._ Namine apologized immediately, not realizing that amount of hurt she had caused her Other with that one simple accusation.

Kairi sighed. _It's okay._

Lifelle got out her black sketchbook again and began drawing. She formed two happy-looking eyes quickly, putting a lot of emphasis on the shading.

"Wow... you're a good artist," Kairi complimented, impressed.

"Thanks! I love to draw... When I was in school, I used to doodle all the time without even realizing it! That might have explained why I flunked otu of science..." Lifelle said, rolling her eyes. The girls laughed together.

"I was never very good at math," Kairi admitted, "I never did my homework."

"Me either," Lifelle replied, sketching a rough outline of a face. She drew the hair in long, fast strokes of her pencil.

"So, is this a character you made up, or...?" Kairi asked, looking closer at the drawing. Lifelle added a nicely sculpted nose and paused before drawing a mouth.

"I don't really know..." She murmered, lost in thought. After a moment, she seemed to come to and laughed. "You see, I'm always drawing the same person, but I don't have a name for her, or anything. Wierd, huh?" She asked, drawing a small, smiling line for a mouth.

"So it's always a girl?"

"Yep! I'm absolutely terrible at drawing guys... I alwayhs make them look incredibly femme," Lifelle explained, chuckling. Kairi laughed. She was about to ask another question, but was interrupted by Darran from the next room.

"Hey Riku, where to next?" Darran asked cheerily from the first room, spread out lazily on the couch.

"Hmmmm... the map doesn't say a name, but it's got a couple different regions... looks like we'll be landing in the forested area. There's a little symbol for each section of this world. Here, have a look," Riku said, offering the map.

Kairi and Darran took the map, looking at the little symbols. The one for the forested area was a little circular swirl with a triangle on one end and a small line where the swirl started on the other. There were a few words underneath the symbol that Kairi had to squint to read.

"The Village hidden in the Leaves..."

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I have only three words for you:

"NARUTO WORLD, BITCHES!"

xD

Vampire Love!


	17. Konoha

Hey guys! So sorry for not updating sooner. I was in Disneyworld on a school trip.

Disclaimer: If I did, Pirates of the Caribbean world wouldn't be as crappy.

**17. Konoha.**

They landed in The Village Hidden in the Leaves in no more than 10 minutes, shooting down 20 or 30 heartless ships along the way. The gummi ship descended into a small clearing with 3 poles in the center. Oddly, when they landed, the clearing was vacant. When they all were out of the ship, (Sora last in line, Kairi first) 4 people were standing there, looking incredulous at the extremely out-of-place aircraft.

"Who are you?" Asked one of the people loudly. He appeared to be in his early teens, with spiky blonde hair, blue eyes, wearing an odd orange jumpsuit, and had 6 whisker-like markings on his face.

At his right was a girl the same age as him, her short magenta hair pulled back with a headband with the same symbol on the map. Kairi noticed the boy who spoke had the same headband wrapped around his forehead.

To the boy's left was another boy, an extremely pale person with jet-black hair that spiked upward in the back and shot down his face on both sides. His eyes were the most fascinating; they were so dark brown they appeared black and were filled with emotions, yet seemed apathetic at the same time. He wore a black jumpsuit with a white-and-red paper fan symbol on the back. His headband was nowhere to be seen.

In front of the blonde boy was a man appearing in his mid-20's, with a handkerchief around his mouth and the same peculiar headband pulled down under one of his eyes. Hid hair was grey and spiked diagonally upward. He smiled briefly.

"What Naruto here _meant_ to say was, welcome to Konoha. I'm Kakashi, sensei of these three. This is Sakura Haruno," he gestured to the girl, who smiled, "And this is Sasuke Uchiha." He gestured to the pale boy, who said nothing. Kairi could feel the vibes of emo radiating off him. "...And Naruto here is of the Uzumaki family," Kakashi finished.

"Hey there," Axel replied. "I'm Axel. These are my friends, Sora, Riku, Darran, Lifelle, and Kairi. And no, we're not ninja. That would be Yuffie's job." Kairi smirked as she compared Yuffie to the four people in front of them.

"Nice to meet you all. We would love to invite you to stay with us, but you caught us in the middle of training," Kakashi said politely.

"Oh, don't worry! You can finish training! We're only here to look for some heartl-" Sora started, catching himself just in time and turning a deep plum red.

"Some what?" Naruto asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing," Riku said hastily. Naruto looked at his sensei, who shrugged. "Alright then, back to training," Kakashi said. The three teenagers vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Wow..." Lifelle said quietly. For a moment, all was quiet. Then came a high-pitched shriek from what was presumably Sakura.

"Sensei... what is this?!" She screeched from the bushes. She ran out from the left of the foliage, a gargoyle heartless dancing behind her.

"Watch out!" Riku cried as it bent it's head backward. A burst of ice came from it's wide-open maw, flying through the air and centering on the pink-haired ninja. Kakashi threw a small, pointed blade at the icebolt, stopping it in the air. Sora took this opportunity to throw his keyblade at the creature, hitting it dead-on. It gave a squawk of fury before Sora's keyblade returned to his hand, only to be thrown once more with nearly doubled force. The heartless disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"...What was that?" The boy named Sasuke asked, materializing in front of them.

"A heartless," Sora answered, sheathing his keyblade, "And that's what we're here for, to find them and destroy them."

"What was that wierd jutsu you just used? And that weapon? Doesn't look like any shurikan or kunai I've ever seen," Naruto asked defiantly.

"That wasn't a _jutsu_," Axel piped up, "And the weapon wasn't a shurikan or a kunai, or anything like that. It was a keyblade, a foreign weapon that only these five can use."

"...Impressive," Kakashi muttered. Sakura nodded.

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Sorry it was so short! I don't have very much time. I have a band concert to go to tonight, but I wanted to at least update a little bit.

Vampire love!


	18. Naruto and Ramen Oh God

Hello, my wonderful readers! Sorry it took me so long to update! But here you go! And by the way, Brightshadow 5 and I are having a who-can-be-meaner to Sora contest. So, if you haven't read it yet, read his story (Fall Back) and then review and tell me which of us you think is making life more difficult for Sora!

Disclaimer: Nope!

**18. Naruto and Ramen... Oh God.**

"We'd love to get you guys some dinner, if you'd like," Kakashi offered generously as the company headed for his house, which was apparantly closest.

"Yeah! Have any of you ever had ramen before?" Naruto asked, looking very excited at the thought of ramen.

"Umm... No. There's nothing called ramen in our world, I think," Kairi replied. Then she remembered that Darran and Lifelle came from a separate world than her, Axel, Riku, and Sora.

"What about you, Darran? Anything called ramen in your world?" Kairi asked, being only slightly flirty. She had seen Sora looking at her furtively from her peripheral vision a moment ago.

Darran, who had been staring into space a minute ago, perked up immediately.

"Ramen? Nope, I don't think so. What's it like?" He cheerily asked Naruto, who wasted no time in giving them a detailed analysis of the joys of ramen. Sakura rolled her eyes; it was obvious she'd heard this speech before. Sasuke merely continued to gaze into the trees surrounding him, a dark and brooding look on his pale face.

Out of the corner of her eye, Kairi saw Sora peeking at her once more.

_Hmmm..._ She thought, an evil idea striking her. She caught up to Darran, who was listening intently to Naruto's description of beef ramen, and grabbed his hand. He looked alarmed for a moment, then went a deep shade of red. Soon the embarassment gave way for delight, though, and he swungtheir clapsed hands together as they walked. Kairi tilted her head a fraction of a degree and saw Sora looking as though someone had slapped him, a murderous rage in the bright blue eyes Kairi knew so well. He continued to glare at Darran until Riku, who saw what was going on, left Lifelle's side to whisper something to Sora. His mouth moved as little as it could as he tore his burning gaze from the boy who was holding hands with Kairi to the ground. Kairi smirked.

_...You don't honestly think this is going to work, do you? He's gonna end up losing it like last time. _Namine predicted from the back of Kairi's mind.

_I just wanna see if he gets jealous, that's all. If he does, then at least I know he likes me and didn't acknowledge what happened for some other asanine reason._ Kairi explained, the smirk not yet having left her face.

_You're an idiot._

_That's a matter of opinion._

_No, I'm pretty sure that's everyone's opinion._

_Oh really?_

_Yeah, really!_

_Name one person __besides your fanboy__ who doesn't think you're an idiot._

_Shut up!_

Kairi and her Nobody continued to bicker until the came to a large apartment complex.

"Home sweet home!" Kakashi announced, leading them up a flight of stairs. He got a ring of keys out of one of his pockets, then swore loudly.

"I left my key in my apartment!" He growled, his uncovered eye narrowing.

"I can handle it," Sora offered. Kakashi's eyebrow rose in defiance as Sora called his keyblade. A beam of white-blue energy shot out of it and directly into the keyhole. A sound like a door being locked reverberated through the hallway.

"That was the keyhole?" Riku asked in disbelief. Sora shrugged sheepishly. "Guess so."

"That was easy," Axel said, strolling through the door as if nothing more exciting than finding a penny heads-up had happened. Kairi rolled her eyes and was the first to follow him, Darran entering the door after her, seeing as he was still holding her hand.

It was a cozy apartment, all in all. Books littered the coffee table and the walls were painted off-white, with blue furniture surrounding them. A small kitchen was to their left, and a short hallway strait in front. The hallway had a guest bedroom, a closet, and a bathroom along it, with the end being a master bedroom.

"It's RAMEN TIME!! WOOOO-HOOOO!!!!!" Naruto yelled obnoxiously, running into the kitchen and getting out a large pot. Several loud crashes and swearing followed. Kairi giggled.

Darran finally let go of her hand to help in the kitchen. Soon Lifelle and Kairi were the only ones left in the large living room.

"So... You're into my brother?" Lifelle asked shyly. Kairi nodded absentmindedly; Sora was talking to Riku in a low undertone.

"Ew." Lifelle was looking at her, her nose wrinkled in disgust. The two girls looked at each other for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"Haha, I'm guessing he's not your type?" Kairi asked, after catching her breath. Lifelle chuckled.

"Nah, I prefer the quiet ones..."

"But... Darran is quiet," Kairi pointed out jokingly.

"Oh, that's only around you," Lifelle clarified, a smile still on her face, "He's usually quite the talker. Can't ever get him to shut up, actually."

"Wow, really?" Kairi asked, her eyes widening in disbelief.

"Yep. Actually, if you want to know a secret, he's had a crush on you since he first met you. But don't tell him I told," Lifelle confided.

"I won't!" Kairi promised.

_You don't feel bad about this at all?_ Namine asked her, pity and disapproval coloring her tone.

_...Maybe a little. But it's okay. He's a guy, remember? All I have to do is get a little moody and whiny and he'll get over it real quick, trust me._ Kairi answered, confident.

"THE RAMEN'S DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Naruto yelled, obviously more happy than one really should be at the thought of ramen.

"You guys might wanna get out here before Naruto eats it all. Sasuke's been known to put it away, too," Kakashi said, poking his head out from the kitchen wall and grinning. Well... he looked like he was grinning. It was kind of hard to tell, with the handkercheif and all.

Kairi helped herself to a bowl of the steaming noodles, blowing on them delicately before taking a bite. They were fantastic; she could see why Naruto was so clearly obsessed.

"This is really good!" She exclaimed, after taking a sip of cold water to douse the fire in her mouth. She had burned her tongue on the ramen.

"Told ya, told ya, told ya!!" Naruto I-told-you-soed through mouthfuls of steaming noodles. Kairi wondered how he couldn't be crying from the scalding his mouth must be taking.

"More!" Sasuke and Naruto cried at the same time, standing up with their bowls in their outstretched hands.

"Ow... my mouth hurts," Kairi complained, tears streaming from her eyes.

"Mine too," Darran sympathetically, draining the last of his water.

The slam of a door made them all jump about a foot in the air.

"Hey, Kakashi. You home yet?" Said a kind-sounding voice from the doorway. Kakashi got up and brought a gentle-looking man with brown hair and a scar on his nose.

"Everyone, this is my roomate Iruka. Iruka, this is Sora, Kairi, Riku, Axel, Lifelle, and Darran. They're from anther world," Kakashi explained, gesturing to each of them in turn.

Iruka and Kakashi went into the kitchen to get ramen refills for everyone, and Naruto caught everyone's eye.

"By the way... They're not 'roomates'," He whispered, giggling a little

"What do you mean? Kakashi just said that they were," Kairi questioned politely.

"They're not... _roomates_," Naruto said again. He and Sakura started laughing quietly, and even Sasuke cracked a smile - the first time had seen him do so. Eventually, everyone but Kairi was snickering.

"What? I don't get - OH!"

Kairi had to stuff a napkin in her mouth to stop the hysteria.

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For everyone that got that final joke, sorry if it made you mad or whatever. I just support that type of thing and I put that in on a joke and for a personal joke xD

Also, HAHA Lizibeth-chan. I'm hoping you got the glaringly obvious personal joke and the other more subtle joke I put in there? Because if you didn't I'm gonna like kill you tomorrow in study hall.

Vampire love!

PS - Review! And read my Pirates of the Caribbean story, "Yo ho, yo ho." Yes, I knwo the name is corny. I'll fix it when I can think of a better title.


	19. Worst Situation Ever

Hello again, my wonderful readers and reviewers! I appreciate the votes I got for the who-can-be-meaner-to-Sora contest, and I'm hoping to get more after this chapter! I was quite a meany face to the poor boy xD

Disclaimer - Nope.

**19. Worst Situation Ever.**

Trying to find everyone places to sleep was time-consuming. In the end, Kakashi, Iruka, Naruto, and Sasuke had to share the master bedroom, Kairi, Sakura, and Lifelle shared the bed in the guest bedroom (much to the amazement of the guys - none of them were willing to share a bed with another guy), and Axel, Sora, Riku, and Darran slept on the couch and floor of the living room.

It took a while for Kairi to fall asleep, though not nearly as long as she thought it would. Sleeping in the same bed as two other girls brought on a bit of nostalgia; she missed all those sleepovers with Selphie back on Destiny Islands. Eventually, Kairi drifted into a dark and fitful sleep. She woke up at least twice with Sakura mock-glaring at her; she had kicked her in the shins. Another time, she had awoken to hear Sakura and Lifelle giggling like mad.

"What's so funny?" Kairi whispered in the darkness. She glanced at the clock on the bookshelf to her right; it was only 2:30.

"You talk in your sleep," Lifelle replied after another laugh attack.

"Oh no, what did I say?!" Kairi moaned, covering her face with her hands. Lifelle and Sakura suddenly looked put out.

"We couldn't understand, it was more sleepmumbling than sleeptalking. But we caught the word 'love' a couple times, and you had a huge smile on your face..." Sakura said, a teasing tone entering her voice.

Kairi yawned. "Mmkay... I'm going back to bed now," she whispered, rolling over. Fortunately, Sakura and Lifelle seemed to notice that Kairi was tired and fell back asleep quickly. Sleep did not come easy to Kairi. She had remembered exactly who she was dreaming of before Sakura and Lifelle's giggling had woken her up. She closed her eyes and sighed, unsettled.

"Kairi! Kairi, wake up," said a voice to the left of her. She opened her eyes irritability; why couldn't these people just her sleep?!

"Riku...? What do you want? It's dark..." Kairi muttered, rubbing her eyes so they would adjust to the light faster.

"I need to talk to you. It's about Sora," Riku whispered, glancing at Lifelle. He lowered his voice even more when she twitched; Kairi was sure he just didn't want to wake her up.

Riku dragged Kairi to the only place they could go without being overheard - the closet. Riku yanked the little chain attached to the light. Kairi's eyes were assaulted yet again by the harsh light.

"Riku, what is this about? I'm tired..." Kairi whined.

"It's about Sora. I know what you're doing; and it's working. Do you have any idea how upset he's been? And _I'm_ the one who has to listen to him bitch all day!" Riku yelled, not bothering to keep his voice down anymore. Kairi could feel her temper rising.

"Okay, first off. DO NOT wake me up at -" she checked the clock on her phone - "3 am to yell at me! And I'm not _doing_ anything," She yelled; the volume of her voice wasn't bothering her much, either.

"Then why the _hell_ are you going out with Darran?" Riku screeched. He was obviously suffering from lost sleep as well; perhaps Sora had been keeping him up by complaining? Kairi found that she didn't exactly care.

"I happen to like Darran. At least _he_ isn't all secretive and a complete and total jackass!" Kairi screamed; forgetting that it was 3 in the morning.

Riku opened his mouth to retaliate, but was interrupted by the door to the hot, stuffy closet being opened. Kairi waited a moment for her eyes to adjust again before seeing who had stumbled in on their arguement - Sora.

_This is bad... Do you realize that you and Riku, Sora's childhood friend and rival, are in a small, hot closet together, both of you very flushed and sweaty? And by the way, you know how your hair gets messed up when you sleep? That's not really helping here,_ Namine panicked. Kairi looked from Sora to Riku, unable to say anything. Riku went even redder before saying, "Look, I know this looks bad, but-"

Sora slammed the door in their faces, his eyes shining in the glare from the light.

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Oh snap! How will this end? What will happen? Whatever will Kairi do? xD The only way you'll find out is to clicky the little button.

And remember, vote for me in the who-can-be-meaner-to-Sora contest!

Vampire love!


	20. Going Under

I'm really proud of myself with this chapter. Oh, the plot thickens.

Disclaimer: No.

**20. Bring Me to Life.**

Everyone walked back to the gummi ship in silence. They had given Kakashi, Iruka, Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto a short farewell and thanks. Of course, no one but Riku, Kairi, and Sora knew why the awkwardness in the air was so thick you could almost taste it, but Axel, Darran, and Lifelle could tell it was there.

Darran slowed down to walk with Kairi again. He touched her hand lightly, as if asking for permission. Kairi smiled and grasped his hand, swinging it with every step.

"So... are you okay? You seem tense," Darran asked casually. (A/N: I hate that word. I hate that word. I hate that word. Blech.)

Kairi looked up, surprised he had noticed. She had tried her best to act normal; she though she was doing a pretty good job. Apparantly not, if it was so recognizeable that a guy picked up on her inner turmoil.

"Yeah, I just have a bit of a headache," she lied, smiling sweetly.

"Oh! You know what really helps headaches? I know this great little remedy for them," Darran said. He brought her hand up to his chest, rubbing the skin on the top of her hand between her pointer finger and her thumb gently. He gradually added more pressure. Amazingly, the pain that _was_ in Kairi's head dissapated, leaving her thinking amazingly clear.

"Wow! Where did you learn that?" Kairi asked, impressed. Darran smiled sheepishly.

"I learned it from my mom, back before..." he trailed off.

"I'm sorry," Kairi said sincerely. Darran shook it off and grinned reassuringly.

"No worries! Is all the pain gone from your head?" He inquired, all his teeth showing in that brilliant smile.

"Yeah... this is the clearest my head's been in like a week," she admitted. Sora threw her a glare from the front of the group. Not bothering to be nonchalant, he walked up to Darran, glaring the entire time.

_Uh oh..._ Namine whispered.

"You know what? I haven't been able to get a decent workout for a while. Wanna fight?" Sora asked, calling his keyblade.

"Um... You think that's a good idea, Sora?" Riku dared to ask. Sora shot him the filthiest look Kairi had ever seen on his face.

Darran's dark mahagonay eyes flicked from Kairi to Sora. His grin widened, like a wolf grinning when another male challanges him to a fight for dominance. His keyblade appeared in his hand.

"In the field, then?" He asked, gesturing to the plains next to them.

"Guys, I really think we should get back to the gummi-"

"Stay out of this, Riku."

Sora's tone was absolutely murderous. He was looking at Darran almost crazily, like a mad seriel killer looks before dismembering his latest victim.

"Let's get on with it," Darran said, taken back a little by Sora's voice. Sora charged for him with lightning speed. Darran just barely got out of the way from a direct hit; his white T-shirt ripped. Blood blossomed on the fabric.

"You're gonna have to do better than that!" Sora called, his voice rougher and lower than ever. There was an animalistic edge to it; very unlike the boyish voice everyone was so used to. Darran doged another attack by ducking; Sora flew right past him and nearly hit a tree. Panting, he paused for a moment to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

_This is bad..._ Namine said, her voice apprehensive.

This time it was Darran who charged. His keyblade was in front of him like a shield until he was right in front of a mildly unprepared Sora. He swung his dark keyblade down on where Sora's head had been a split second before. Blood spurted from his shoulder as he cried out in pain; Darran's keyblade had gone much deeper than his had.

Darran flitted back out of swinging range and turned back to face Kairi. His eyes were overbright; his smile too manical.

"Did you see that, Kairi?" He asked, his voice higher from excitement.

_Don't respond, don't respond, don't respond..._ Namine was chanting.

"Watch out!" Kairi yelled. Sora was right behind Darran, grinning psychotically. A shocking change appeared in front of him. His skin got much, much paler; almost sickly. Deep, black shadows grew under his eyes, which were turning from thier usual laughing, light blue to onyx. It was as if all the darkness in Sora had risen up to his eyes, which were shining unhealthily bright. Sora's nails turned clawlike and deep black, growing out of his gloves. Two dark wings protruded out of Sora's back, snapping open with a sickening clack. They completely encased Sora in darkness; not a hint of light shone on him. Darkness itself shimmered around the wings, swirling endless coils. Finally, Sora's canines were growing at an alarming rate, protruding from his mouth. They stopped the inexplicable growth spurt at a halfway point between his chin and mouth, glistening sickly.

"Wrong move, kid."

Sora took one swipe at Darran with his clawlike hands. Blood spurted from his stomach as he fell backward, making a sanguine, morbid arc in the air.

"Sora... what's happened to you?" Kairi whispered. He raised one of his wings threateningly.

"You. You did this to me," He accused, pointing one clawed finger.

"What are you-"

Kairi was interrupted by Sora's wing puncturing her arm. His wing, clawed at the top and at the bottom points, had sped towards her with such a speed that Kairi was amazed that it didn't cut her arm clean off. Instead, it had barely perforated her skin. A single trickle of blood trickled down her arm.

"Sora..." she whispered. Suddenly, a paralyzing pain shot up her arm and through her body. She screamed, unable to tell who she was, where she was, when she was...

Kairi plummeted into darkness, in complete pain. She screamed; was this dying? It felt like it. She soon found herself wishing to die as fast as possible, just to stop the fire in her veins. Suddenly, an odd thing happened. She started to sing. It was an eerie lamentation, echoing around the endless darkness swirling around her.

**How can you see into my eyes?**

**...Like open doors.**

Sora was in front of her now. Not the deformed, maniacal Sora who had hurt her, but the old Sora. His hand was outstretched; it looked as though he was clawing at something to try to reach her. His lips moved, but Kairi only heard her own voice, being used against her will to sing.

**Leading you down into my core,**

**Where I've become so numb.**

Memories flashed through Kairi. Her 5th birthday party... she had first seen Sora, his spiky hair bouncing as he ran. She giggled; this boy was cute...

**Without a soul.**

**My spirit, sleeping somewhere cold.**

...She saw herself, writhing in pain next to an unconious Darran. Her mouth was locked in a frozen stream; Riku was shaking her...

**Until you find it there in me, **

**Back home.**

Sora had broken through whatever it was he was fighting so despearately momnets before. He grabbed her in a tight embrace, whispering in her ear. _Stop singing, _she told herself. Her mouth shut, yet the words continued to flow through the darkness...

**Wake me up inside.**

**Wake me up inside.**

**Call my name and save me from the dark...**

And that's exaclty what Sora was doing. She heard him screaming "Kairi!" in her ear frantically, pulling her along with him as he ran through the abyss.

**Bid my blood to run,**

**Before I come undone,**

**Save me from the nothing I've become...**

**Bring me to life.**

Thy had reached a wall. Sora kicked at the darkness encroaching it fiercely, it crumbled and fell. "We're almost back..." he whispered. A white light shone in front of them. Sora kept her in a his tight embrace as he barrelled forward. Sunshine burst in front of them. Kairi suddenly became aware of a horrible ripping sound. She looked around, where was that coming from?

Oh. It was her, sobbing uncontrollably.

"It's okay, Kairi, it's okay, you're going to be fine, it's okay..." Sora was repeating, an edgeo f hysteria to his voice. She looked up at his eyes, no longer pitch black. Yet, they were not back to normal. For the first time in her life, Kairi saw something in them that she had never seen before. Fear. Pure, helpless fear, as if the world was ending and there was nothing he could do about it.

"What... happened?" Kairi asked. Her voice broke three times in that simple sentence.

"I hurt you... Kairi, I'm so sorry," Sora whispered. Anguish flooded his eyes, intermixing with the fear. Kairi looked around. They were in the forest, a small stream to their right. Sunlight shine through the trees overhead. Kairi looked at her arm, where a small purple-black bruise showed.

"What... happened to you?" Kairi asked.

"I don't know... I just got so mad... The next thing I knew, I was that... that thing. And then... this part of my mind... It was controlling me. I wasn't myself. I couldn't think. Then... I saw you, screaming, blood flowing from your arm. I attacked that... that strange metality that was taking over... then I saw you, in the darkness. I ran towards you. Your face was blank, empty. Emotionless. It scared me Kairi, more than you will ever know," Sora finished, lowering his head in shame.

"Sora... Are you okay?" She asked. Even though he attacked her, Kairi was far more concerned for him than she was for herself.

"How can you be worrying about me at a time like this?" Sora asked, looking up at her again. Disbelief was written all over his face.

"Because. That wasn't you that attacked me," Kairi responded. Her face drew closer to Sora.

"Besides that... why do you care?" Sora asked, though not unkindly. His face, too, was coming closer.

"Because... I love you. I always have, and I always will," Kairi said, the words coming out in a rush. All the anguish and fear was exterminated from Sora's eyes as he whispered, "I love you too, Kairi."

Remember that stereotypical romantic movie? Remember the final scene, when the boy and girl declare their feelings, and then the slow and emotional music starts playing in the background as they kiss for the first time? Think of that moment, only a hundred times better, and then you will be able to envision Sora and Kairi's first kiss.

This moment was cut short, however, by a scream from outside the trees. Sora and Kairi broke out of the kiss clumsily, seeing Lifelle, shrouded in a demonic light. Fire landed where her feet left the earth. Her eyes glowed red.

"You," she whispered. It seemed a thousand voices spoke at once.

"You killed my brother," she went on, blood dripping from her hands. Riku came after her, wearing the same dark outfit he had when Ansem had taken over him two years ago. His eyes, too, glowed an evil red.

"You went too far, Sora," he declared. The two of them created a portal of darkness, glaring at the couple before them.

"We'll meet again," they said in unison. And then they disappeared into the portal, leaving pools of fire behind.

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Please review. I worked really hard on this and put a lot of effort in it!

Vampire love!


	21. Dream

I KNOW I KNOW!! Sorry for not updating sooner. I'm like... mega-grounded. Thanks to all my reviewers! I now have OVER 50 reviews!! -high five- You guys are loved!!

Disclaimer: Nope.

**21. Dream.**

"Sora? Sora! SORA, WAKE UP!!"

Sora yelped and jumped out of his makeshift bed. The blanket that he had wrapped himself in went flying.

"What, Riku?!" He yelled angrily. A dull pounding started above his right eye.

"You were talking in your sleep, man. You were kinda... cursing. Really loud. And this was right before you were kinda... talking about Kairi..." Riku trailed off, looking unsure whether or not it was okay to laugh.

Sora looked around, bewildered. What happened to the field he was just in?

"Wait... did you say I was talking in my sleep?" He asked in disbelief. Riku nodded.

"...FUCK!" Sora yelled, slamming his fists on the walls. Axel woke with a start.

"Sora, calm down..." he mumbled, muffing another yawn. "There are ladies in the house..."

"Yeah, man, what's gotten into you?" Riku asked, his eyebrows raised. He had seen Sora fly off the handle before, but he'd never heard his best friend drop the F-bomb. Especially not at the top of his lungs.

Sora was fast-walking into the bathroom, breathing fast. He slammed the door and Riku and Axel shared a wide-eyed look as they heard excessive swearing and banging as Sora flipped out.

Two very loud and explicit minutes later, Sora walked out of the bathroom. A weary and defeated expression shrouded his facel he suddenly looked 5 years older.

"Dude, what was that all about?" Riku asked, shaking his head.

"Nothing," Sora lied nastily. Riku opened his mouth to retaliate, but was interrupted by the sound of a door opening. Sakura, Lifelle, and Kairi filed out of the small bedroom, scratching their heads and yawning. Kairi looked at Sora for a fraction of a second before turning beet red and flitting into the bathroom. Sora narrowed his eyes in confusion, until he remembered last night.

_Um... Dude... You aren't gonna like... Kill Riku, are you?_ Roxas asked from the back of his mind.

_Maybe..._ Sora answered murderously. Riku caught the rageful expression on his face.

"Okay, it's so not what you think... I was only talking to her, and then we ended up yelling. Nothing happened, I _swear_," he explained, sincerity showing in his eyes.

_Ha! See, he's telling the truth,_ Roxas pointed out triumphantly.

_And how do you know that?_

_His nostrils flare when he's lying._

_What? I never knew that. Why haven't you told me, after all this time?! _Sora demanded of his Other. Roxas just shrugged smugly.

_Damn. I really wanted to hit him_, Sora thought wistfully. Realizing that Riku was still staring at him, clearly waiting for a reaction, he sighed angrily.

"That better be the truth, because if it isn't-"

"I know, I know. You will have full rights to lock me in a room with Axel and all of our fangirls, should I be lying," Riku laughed. Sora smirked, he almost wished Riku _was_ lying, just so he could see that.

Kakashi, Iruka, Naruto, and Sasuke stumbled out of the master bedroom sleepily. Their early-morning grumbling woke Darran up, who stretched his arms and ran a hand through his inky black hair.

"Where's Kairi?" He murmered, looking around the room. Everyone else was present and dressed. As if to answer his question, Kairi walked out of the bathroom. Today she was wearing a blue T-shirt with a simple, poorly-drawn sunflower on it. The words RELIENT K were written across the bottom in block letters. She wore jean capris and black flip-flops as well, and pulled her hair back in a dark blue headband.

"Morning!" Darran greeted her brightly. Kairi turned faintly pink and determinedly refused to meet Sora's eye.

"Morning," she answered, after an unconvincing fake yawn.

Sora felt his heart plummet in his chest. So was all just a dream after all.

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HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Take that, Brightshadow! Who's meaner to Sora now?

Vampire love!


	22. Dragon

I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW!! Sorry for the wait. And the sucky chapter.

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Kairi picked at her breakfast in silence. Sora had moody all morning – even moodier than his new self. He had spoken to no one since his little flip-out that had woken Kairi up.

_What did you expect? He saw you in the closet with Riku._ Namine reminded her. Kairi shook her head.

_That'__s not it. He would only be cold-shouldering me and Riku. He's cold-shouldering EVERYONE._ Kairi fretted.

An earsplitting crash jerked Kairi out of her reverie. Everyone looked up from their food; Axel's chakrams were in his hands in a flash of fire. Another crash sounded from above them and plaster fell from the roof, dusting the table completely in a matter of milliseconds. Then there was silence.

"…What was that?" Lifelle asked after a moment. They didn't have to wait very long to find out. With a bloodcurdling cry, the roof was lifted by a gigantic, monstrous dragon. It was pitch black, red eyes leering at them above rows of jagged teeth. Its body was long and angular, with its enormous wings flapping almost lazily, sending clouds of dust at them with each beat. Hooked laws too long for the dragon's paws jutted from its fingers. Darkness emanated from it, swirling and coiling in the morning light.

"Did you guys already seal the keyhole?" Axel asked, running along with everyone else to the field in front of the apartment. Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi, and Iruka were bewildered.

"Yeah! We did!" Sora grunted, calling his keyblade.

"Obviously, _that_ wasn't the keyhole!" Darran spat, facing the dragon. It seemed to grin at them from the air, as if saying _come and get me. _

"You asked for it, jackass!" Axel said, grinning. His chakrams were suddenly ablaze and whirling through the air, right towards the dragon. They hit the mark, each one ripping a hole through the leathery wings of the dragon. It cried out in pain and fell to the ground. Everyone with a keyblade sprang forward, prepared to attack the dragon with everything they had. Before they got too close, though, the flying heartless –they could see the insignia on its chest- was up in the air again. The perforations in its wings were tiny pinpricks now, and they were gone in another second.

"Regeneration…" Kairi whispered.

"Want some help?" asked Sakura, pulling out a kunai. Kakashi, Iruka, Sasuke, and Naruto followed her example. Lifelle nodded. Axel was already bombarding it with fire once more.

"So if that wasn't the keyhole, where is it? And what-" Kairi broke off, dodging a slash from the heartless' spiked tail, "-Did that keyhole do?"

"Hell if I know," Riku answered, shooting lightning bolts at the creature.

Nothing was working. They could have been throwing pebbles at the heartless for all the damage they were doing. It was just toying with them; that was apparent. It seemed to be enjoying itself.

"Nothing's working!" Naruto complained. He was out of kunai and already sporting many shallow cuts from where the dragon's tail had grazed his cheek.

"Not even my sharingan is effective," Kakashi stated calmly. Kairi gasped; it was the first time she had seen his right eye, (left to her) which was glowing red with curious black symbols around the edges.

"Nor mine," Sasuke added angrily. She noticed he had the same phenomenon, only it was both eyes instead of just one.

"Has your… sharingan… ever failed before?" Kairi asked. Both Sasuke and Kakashi shook their heads.

Another roar from their opponent stalled any further conversation. It dived at them like a black bullet, jaws open wide.

"Duck!" Axel yelled, hitting the ground. Kairi could tell that even if she did move, it would still hit her. She opened her mouth, a scream starting, when someone grabbed her as they flew past her. She reopened her eyes and saw Sora on top of her, breathing hard. He was bleeding badly; it's jaws had snared one of his legs.

"Sora! Are you okay?" She asked as he attempted to stand up. He cried out in pain and fell, but Kairi caught and steadied him.

"Here, let me heal that," she whispered. The tip of her keyblade glowed green before little clovers danced above his injured leg. The blood disappeared instantly.

"Thanks…" he said awkwardly.

"Look, about last night-" Kairi started. Another roar cut her off.

_Right.__Dragon._ She thought to herself. It opened its jaws and pure darkness spewed out. Riku darted in between Kairi and Sora and the dragon, creating a shield between them and the darkness.

"Guys, move! This isn't easy," Riku roared. Kairi and Sora flitted to the left, as did Riku a second after them. They ran to a bush where the rest of them were crouching, discussing the best way to defeat their seemingly invincible problem.

"I have an idea," Sora said quietly. Everyone turned to look at him.

"Why doesn't everyone hit him in the chest with their weapons at the same time – it seems like that'll be the only part of him that won't regenerate. Kairi, Riku, Darran, Lifelle, and I will throw our keyblades, Axel his chakrams, and you guys can throw those knives," Sora said.

"Kunai," Sakura corrected. Sora nodded.

"On three, then. One… Two… Three!" Sora whispered. They darted from behind the bush and threw their weapons at the airborne heartless. The melee of keyblades, kunai, and chakrams struck it in the middle of its heartless insignia. Darkness pooled around it as it fell, and soon after a single, glittering heart rose into the sky and evaporated. Everyone's weapons returned to their hands, with the exception of the kunai.

"…So, do you guys care to explain why that little trick of yours yesterday didn't work?" Kakashi asked, his voice muffled as always by his mask. There was a very long pause.

"I have no idea," Sora said hopelessly.

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I know. It sucks.


End file.
